


Sliver of Shadow

by Zhaoq



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Adventure, Crossover, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-01
Updated: 2018-06-25
Packaged: 2018-07-19 08:58:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 21
Words: 58,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7354378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zhaoq/pseuds/Zhaoq
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hades reluctantly sends his son, Nico di Angelo, on a quest... to Hogwarts. Obviously, someone needs decapitating.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A (Seriously) Bad Start

 

**Disclaimer: I do not own, no matter how much I want to.**

"Well?" Hades looked down at his kneeling son, sounding almost pleading. "Will you do it?"

Said son only stared incredulously. "You're not serious."

Hades looked away. He couldn't let Nico see the guilt so clearly etched in his face. The black obsidian throne he sat on dug into his back uncomfortably, almost berating him for trying to send his scarred son on another quest. But did he have a choice?

"Please, Nico. I know I haven't been the best father, and you could care less about what I want, but this is really important to me. Hecate -"

"Isn't going to give me a choice." Nico rolled his eyes. "Fine. What about Eros? My wounds from him won't heal for a month, and if I step out of camp borders, he'll come for me again."

Hades flinched. He hadn't thought about that.

"Well… Thanatos can keep his twin at bay, I guess. But then you'll have to take on some of his duties. You can do that, right?"

A curt nod from Nico.

"And your, er… injuries. They can't possibly be that bad -"

Wordlessly, Nico turned. Hades suddenly realized that the boy wasn't wearing a shirt. What exactly had he dragged Nico out of when he'd shadow-travelled him here?

The god received his answer soon enough.

Bleeding diagonal whip lashes stood out against Nico's pale skin, some only half bandaged. The Apollo kids had no doubtedly been in the middle of patching him up - and Hades had forced him here. In excruciating pain, no less.

_Extremely_ colorful language nearly pushed pass Hades's lips, but instead he stood, summoning Asclepius from Greece's prison with a flick of his wrist. Zeus's laws be damned… he wasn't going to leave his son like this.

"My lord?" Asclepius stared at Hades as he fell out of the shadows. "Excuse me for rudeness, but you can't just grab me for any medical issue. Zeus will be furious."

"I don't care. Just heal my son…" Hades growled. The _or else_ was implied. He could deal with Zeus later. As for Eros…

A sadistic smile crept across his face.

Assuming it was directed at him, Asclepius whimpered and immediately turned to Nico, assessing the bloody lines marring the teenager's back. He sucked in a sharp breath.

"Work of Eros, eh? Well… we've got a slight problem."

"What is it?" Hades's panicked tone made him sound every bit like a normal - _mortal_ \- worried father. "What's wrong?"

"Well… before Eros flogged him, which I'm assuming he did, he must have cursed the whip so Nico could never heal - not by magic. I-I really can't -"

Shadows spun faster around Hades, threatening to tear down the palace. Nico flinched, and muttered something under his breath. The lord of the dead was _pretty_ sure it hadn't been polite.

"Do whatever you can. Fix him, or so help me Olympus…"

"H-hey!" The medicine god stammered. "I can stitch the skin mortally! I can do that much!"

Almost immediately, the blood bubbling up from Nico's lashes drained away. As if pulled together by an invisible needle and thread, the cuts closed, leaving only nasty scars. The pale skin barely held together.

Nico stood slowly, wincing as he got up. "At your service. _Sir._ " His tone was mocking, disrespectful. Normally, this would have angered his father, but today…

Hades's blood curdled at the thought of sending Nico to England in this condition. But... there was no going back. A black t-shirt appeared over the boy's shoulders as Hades melted him into the darkness.

**A/N: Please review. Flames are annoying, but whatever.**

***Nico's "injury" is going to be part of his character development. Apparently my friend thinks I need more of it. Sadly, I have a morbid imagination.**

* * *

  **As you can see, I came from FFN. So yeah.**

**Writing gets better later on. Looking back on these first few chapters... *cringe*.**


	2. Screw This

**Disclaimer: Do not own. *Cries***

Nico stumbled into King's Cross station on platform 9 ¾ in front of a scarlet train. Normally the grandeur would have awed him, but Nico's mind was still reeling from the impossible task his father had given him. The mission, of course? Go to school…

In Hogwarts.

Why? Well, naturally to decapitate his nephew, of course.

Tom Marvolo Riddle.

A faint memory tugged at Nico's mind as he thought of the name, but he couldn't remember... It was buried with Lethe, then. Probably it was best for him not to know what it was.

Cool metal slid underneath his hands. He looked down as saw he was holding a cart, packed with books and a… was that a raven? Why was a _bird_ part of his school supplies?

Nico had only seconds to ponder this, when a pretty red-haired girl suddenly barreled into him, knocking both him and the cart over.

She scrambled frantically to help him up. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean -"

"I'm fine." Nico cut her off, although he really wasn't. His back felt like it was being whipped all over again, and he had to fight hard to keep his expression neutral. "Could you help me…" He gestured at the fallen cart, complete with angry squawking raven.

"Oh! Of course, of course!" The girl bent down, picking up a few of his fallen supplies.

Carefully, as not to jar his throbbing wounds, Nico bent down to help her.

"So." The girl studied him carefully. "I'm Ginny Weasley. And you are? Well... American, I'm presuming by your accent, but what's your name?"

"Nico di Angelo." Nico spoke curtly.

She frowned. "Isn't that an Italian name?"

"Yeah, I was born there. But I don't remember… much."

She nodded, quickly accepting his vague answer. "But I've never seen you at Hogwarts. Sorry if this seems a bit rude, but what are you doing here?"

_Don't I wonder._ Nico thought. Out loud he said, "I'm an exchange student. My father thought Hogwarts was a better school."

His first lie.

* * *

Nico stepped off the train, groaning in relief. Six hours in a tiny compartment had been murder on his ADHD. He looked around. Everyone else was wearing robes, but Nico wasn't about to bother putting on his. Just being here was bad enough. To wear those infernal clothes? That was pushing it.

"Don't you see it, Ron?" A voice shouted near Nico. "It's right in front of you!"

"What is?" A second voice muttered. "There's nothing there."

Nico looked over and saw midnight black skeletal horses pulling a few dozen carriages. Thestrals.

And he sensed two souls. In one body.

_Interesting…_

"You can see them?" He asked the first boy (it was the double-soul dude), who was staring at the dark pegasi in horror.

The double-soul boy jumped and turned at Nico's voice. His eyes widened. "Oh! You must be the American exchange student Ginny was talking about. You can see those horses?"

"That's what I asked you." Nico rolled his eyes. "Of course I can see them. But they're only visible to those who have seen death…"

The double-soul boy (Nico was getting tired of calling him that - what was his name, anyway?) flinched. "Oh." He said in a small voice. "I get it. But wait - why can you see them?"

"Many reasons. Death is no stranger to me."

_Literally,_ thought Nico. He and Thanatos knew each other very well. Add in the few run-ins with Anubis in that New Orleans graveyard… But the real reason, he knew, was his position. Demigod. Son of Hades. _Ghost_ King. Seeing death - causing it even - was inevitable for him.

"I never got your name." Nico asked the other boy, who looked genuinely surprised. They climbed into a carriage with two other girls and the second boy - Ron.

"Y-you don't know it?"

"Uh…" He cursed himself for being so inarticulate. "Should I?"

"Yes." Ron butted in. "Of course you should. He's Harry Potter!"

A faint realization unfolded in Nico's mind. Wasn't this the boy who had first inadvertently defeated Riddle when he was a baby - and then had inadvertently brought him back last year? He did remember his father telling him something about Harry being all famous…

"Oh." Nico only raised an eyebrow during the turmoil in his mind. "You just aren't that well known in the states. Sorry."

"Not at all!" Harry seemed delighted. "Fame isn't everything, you know."

"Tell me about it." He looked at Harry and Ron's surprised faces. "What? I'm wanted by mortals for about 50 crimes in every state in America. Most of which I didn't even commit."

"What? Why?" A bushy-haired girl leaned forward, at the same time Harry said,

"Mortals? Like Muggles?"

Nico chose to ignore the girl. "What do you mean, Muggles?"

"You know, non-magical folk."

The carriage jolted. Nico winced, his back throbbing. The sound of paper crumpling could be heard as he reached into his pocket for ambrosia. _Huh._

"Oh… right. We call them mortals back home."

The carriage continued to jolt. Nico swore in Italian, cursing Eros profusely as his body laced with pain. Not his preferred language… But he knew better than to do it in Ancient Greek. Last time he'd done that… well, it was what he was swearing about now.

"What language was that?" The bushy-haired girl asked nosily. "Aren't you American?"

"It was Italian. I'm Italian by birth."

Ron nodded. "Ginny told me about that. But she said you didn't remember anything."

"I don't. I just speak the language." Nico's tone made it clear this conversation was closed. Of all people, he just _had_ to be with those who knew Ginny, didn't he?

But he forgot about that as soon as he looked ahead. A giant castle suddenly loomed in front of him. It was nearly as big as Hades's palace, with tall turrets and beautifully arched windows. Nico's mouth dropped open.

"That's a _school?_ "

* * *

Nico was carried into the Great Hall on a tide of whiny eleven year olds. _Wow._ _Great start._ Then he saw a old man at the front of the professors' dining table staring at him quizzically. He must be the Headmaster.

Showtime.

He took out the forged letter from the Minister of Magic that he had found in his pocket while reaching for ambrosia (no doubt the work of his father or Hecate), and walked up to the elderly teacher. The students in the Great Hall achieved something never before seen in a beginning-of-the-year feast.

Silence.

Nico did not trust himself enough to speak either. He simply handed the letter to the man known as Professor Dumbledore.

Dumbledore took the letter and read it. He raised his eyebrows.

"Well. How very unexpected." He stood, addressing the Great Hall. "It seems we have a new exchange student this year. Students, please welcome Mr. Nico di Angelo."

Murmuring broke out in the crowd. Nico saw a few girls looking his way. He decided to melt back into the crowd. Feminine attention would not end well.

A hat was soon brought out and placed on a stool. And guess what?

It began to sing.

_In times of old when I was new,_

_And Hogwarts barely started,_

_The founders of our noble school,_

_Thought never to be parted,_

_United by a common goal,_

_They had the selfsame yearning,_

_To make the world's best magic school,_

_And pass along their learning._

_"Together we will build and teach!"_

_The four good friends decided,_

_And never did they dream,_

_That they might some day be divided,_

_For were there such friends anywhere,_

_As Slytherin and Gryffindor?_

_Unless it was the second pair_

_Of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?_

_So how could it have gone so wrong?_

_How could such friendships fail?_

_Why, I was there and so can tell,_

_The whole sad, sorry tale._

_Said Slytherin, "We'll teach just those whose_

_Ancestry is purest."_

_Said Ravenclaw, "We'll teach those whose_

_Intelligence is surest."_

_Said Gryffindor, "We'll teach all those_

_With brave deeds to their name."_

_Said Hufflepuff, "I'll teach the lot,_

_And treat them just the same."_

_These differences caused little strife,_

_When first they came to light,_

_For each of the four founders had_

_A house in which they might_

_Take only those they wanted,_

_So, for instance, Slytherin_

_Took only pure-blood wizards_

_Of great cunning, just like him,_

_And only those of sharpest mind_

_Were taught by Ravenclaw_

_While the bravest and the boldest_

_Went to daring Gryffindor._

_Good Hufflepuff, she took the rest,_

_And taught them all she knew,_

_Thus the houses and their founders_

_Retained friendships firm and true._

_So Hogwarts worked in harmony_

_For several happy years,_

_But then discord crept among us_

_Feeding on our faults and fears._

_The houses that, like pillars four,_

_Had once held up our school,_

_Now turned upon each other and,_

_Divided, sought to rule._

_And for a while it seemed the school_

_Must meet an early end,_

_What with dueling and with fighting_

_And the clash of friend on friend_

_And at last there came a morning_

_When old Slytherin departed_

_And though the fighting then died out_

_He left us quite downhearted._

_And never since the founders four_

_Were whittled down to three_

_Have the houses been united_

_As they once were meant to be._

_And now the Sorting Hat is here_

_And you all know the score:_

_I sort you into houses_

_Because that is what I'm for,_

_But this year I'll go further,_

_Listen closely to my song:_

_Though condemned I am to split you_

_Still I worry that it's wrong,_

_Though I must fulfill my duty_

_And must quarter every year_

_Still I wonder whether Sorting_

_May not bring the end I fear._

_Oh, know the perils, read the signs,_

_The warning history shows,_

_For our Hogwarts is in danger_

_From external, deadly foes_

_And we must unite inside her_

_Or we'll crumble from within_

_I have told you, I have warned you…_

_Let the Sorting now begin._

_How positive,_ Nico thought dryly, _I'll fit right in._

"When I call your name, come forward. You will take a seat on the stool, and I will place this hat on your head. Any questions?" The tall witch who had brought in the hat addressed the first years. Nico later learned her name was Professor McGonagall.

"Di Angelo, Nico!"

_Wonderful._ He was first.

Nico sat on the stool, staring at the battered hat apprehensively. It only smiled at him, which was creepy.

McGonagall dropped it onto his head.

The brim of the hat fell over his eyes, so he couldn't see. Nico was enclosed in his personal darkness, waiting to be chosen for a house. He wondered if this was what it felt like to be brought before the three judges in the Underworld.

_Well, what do we have here? A demigod, eh?_ The hat mentally projected.

_Holy…_ A string of colorful words erupted in his head. The hat choked.

_No need to get nasty, I'll just need to poke around your mind a bit…_

Nico's eyes widened. _No way this was happening. No way…_

He put up mental barriers so the gods-damned hat couldn't get in. But even then, he didn't know how long he could hold it. Nico was already weak from his ordeal with Eros yesterday (Had it been just yesterday? It felt like millennia.) - who knew whether he would last?

_Oh - resistant, I see. Don't worry, your secrets are safe with me. It's my enchanted hat honor code._

_It's not me I'm worried about._ Nico spoke (thought?) directly to the hat.

It didn't listen, and Nico would not take any responsibility for what happened next.

The mental walls were pushed down. A flood of images and memories cascaded out.

Bianca. Minos. The Titan War. Hazel and Camp Jupiter. Tartarus. The giant twins and their cruel entertainment. The bronze jar. Epirus and the Athena Parthenos. Gaea's rise. Eros's punishment.

Every painful memory, every searing second of Nico's remembered life was relived inside a conical piece of cloth. It was simply too much.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" The hat wailed out loud. "HELP! HELP! GET ME OFF OF HIM! HELP! God have mercy on those ghosts…"

The last part was barely a whisper, but it was heard throughout the entire hall. An uneasy stirring passed through the ghosts of Hogwarts as Nico threw off the hat. They realized who he was - or rather, _what._

Nico di Angelo was a…

"Slytherin, for the cunning used to survive." The Sorting Hat croaked out. "Or Gryffindor, for surviving at all. You choose."

Murmurs and shouts coursed through the hall.

"He can't be in both!"

"Slytherin _and_ Gryffindor?"

"The Ghost King!"

The last comment came from a partially decapitated ghost. Nico flinched... He hoped no one had noticed that comment. Quickly, he made a silencing gesture behind his back, sealing the lips of all of the ghosts in the Hall.

"Well?" Dumbledore asked him. "The sorting hat told you to choose. What is your decision?"

Truthfully, Nico just wanted to leave. He didn't belong here, in this strange world where sticks produced an infinite reservoir of power, and brooms soared into the sky like birds. He didn't belong in any of this - but for one thing.

A cheater of death.

What he didn't understand, (nor did Hades, for that matter), was why he couldn't just destroy all of Riddle's δοχεία ψυχή (soul containers in Greek) and then lop Tom's head off. But the fates had woven an intricate web of destiny (again), and Nico was trapped inside it.

Well… there were two ways Nico could go. Join Riddle's opposing group with Harry Potter, or enter the House of Snakes - and become friends with Riddle's allies.

_Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer._

It was obvious what the smarter, more dangerous path was.

Nico took it.

"I choose Slytherin."

* * *

Nico could not believe the amount of food. Heaps of juicy meats and fresh vegetables lined the table, tantalizingly close. Then he looked around.

There were, obviously, no braziers anywhere. Damn. No food for him tonight.

"Nice choice of House." The blonde boy across from him remarked as he took a seat. "Are you a pureblood?"

"A… what?" What in Hades was a pureblood?

"You know - pureblood, half-blood, or," His face melted into a sneer, "Mudblood?"

Nico decided "mudblood" would not be the right thing to say.

"Half-blood." Different context probably, but not technically a lie.

"Good enough." The other boy shrugged. "I'm Draco Malfoy. Nice to meet you."

"Same." Nico wasn't sure whether to continue the conversation. Socializing - it was one of his worst nightmares (and that was saying a lot). "So… what's it like here at Hogwarts?"

"Boring, really. It's school, after all. Besides, there's always Golden Trio messing everything up."

"The Golden _what?_ "

"Harry Potter and his snobby gang. Always going around saving people. Such Gryffindors." Draco raised his eyebrows. "Like you, apparently."

The _why?_ was implied.

Nico froze, trying to think of an answer.

"Well, my life hasn't been too easy, and I'm really not that brave. I guess my memories just scared the hat a little. I mean - it's just a piece of cloth and…" He forced a laugh. "I'm rambling, aren't I?"

Draco only shrugged. "This is Slytherin. We all have our secrets. But we look out for our own. Sadly, the rest of the school hates us."

"Why?"

"We've got a reputation." Draco sighed. "But it isn't enough. Potter always beats us at everything, the bloody git."

Nico wondered what a "git" was.

"No matter." He rolled his eyes. "I'm used to being hated. My old school… well, not many welcomed a person with my… skills."

"Skills?"

"My heritage grants me with special... powers. I'm not proud of them, but they are helpful sometimes."

Draco looked interested, but he didn't prod. _Smart choice,_ thought Nico.

A while later, (it felt like only seconds - Nico's ADHD must have kicked in). A short ugly woman dressed in an unspeakable color (pink) stood up, interrupting Dumbledore's speech.

Nico repressed an urge to throw up upon sight.

"Hem, hem. Thank you, Headmaster," Professor Umbridge simpered, "for those kind words of welcome."

Nico reminded himself that suicide was a _bad_ thing.

"Well, it is lovely to be back at Hogwarts, I must say!" She smiled, revealing very pointed teeth. "And to see such happy little faces looking back at me!"

_Yeah, my face'll be happy,_ Nico thought, _When Tartarus freezes over._

But then the real torture began.

"The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the Wizarding community must be passed down through the generations lest we lose them forever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished, and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching."

Professor Umbridge paused here and made a little bow to her fellow staff members, none of whom bowed back. Professor McGonagall's dark eyebrows had contracted so that she looked positively hawklike. But Nico notice none of this as he hunched over, trying to contain the little food he had in his stomach. Holy Hades… Monsters he could deal with, but this?

"Every headmaster and headmistress of Hogwarts has brought something new to the weighty task of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. There again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between permanence and change, between tradition and innovation . . ."

Nico promptly attempted to force himself into a death trance.

**A/N: So tired...**

**Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz**


	3. Allies - For Now

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**A/N: I'm having major writer's block right now, so I'm sorry if this chapter sucks. I'm only a middle school student, after all.**

* * *

Harry knew something was definitely wrong when all the ghosts shut up and left the Great Hall. Well, he had suspected it after the Sorting Hat went mental and started screaming like a demented cat, but…

Anyway, there was something up with that new transfer student.

Hermione caught his eye. _Did you notice it too?_ Her expression asked. He nodded, biting his lip.

They turned to Ron.

Who continued eating.

And eating.

And -

"Ron!" Hermione whispered. "Ron, will you stop eating!"

"Mpgh?" He looked up. "Wit dun yi wun?" He frowned, then swallowed. "What do you want?"

"Did you see the ghosts?" Hermione asked him, her eyes wide. "Nico did something with them!"

Ron rolled his eyes in disbelief and... continued eating.

* * *

Nico awoke in a white hospital bed surrounded by a multitude of cowering ghosts.

He groaned. His quest was just getting better and better. First Professor _Umbrage,_ now this? _Why? Just... why?_

Blinking, Nico took in his surroundings. It was dark, already nighttime, with stars glittering outside a nearby window. Rows of small, identically made beds lay around him. Obviously the wizards hadn't been able to wake him up, and had to take him here... wherever he was.

_Stupid,_ he told himself, _Why did I fall asleep?_ He _knew_ sleeping was a bad idea. It usually ended up in nightmares that no one could pull him out of. He didn't remember what he had dreamed, but it must have been bad if he'd summoned so many ghosts.

He glared at the the entities in question. They, surprisingly, hadn't left.

"What?"

None of them spoke. Most just flailed their arms around their mouths. Nico remembered that he had silenced most of them after his Sorting.

_Oops._

He flicked his fingers, undoing the spell. Unfortunately, the groveling began at once.

"M-my lord, please have mercy. We didn't mean any harm coming back - " One ghost started, trying at diplomacy.

"DON'T KILL US!" A fat poltergeist floating near the ceiling sobbed. Nico quickly re-silenced him.

Another ghost flew in circles, wailing. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

The clamoring grew to a crescendo, ghosts crying and begging, until...

Nico lost his patience.

A wave of shadow rolled off of him, freezing the ghosts in their tracks as they tried to flee their angry king.

"Will you shut up?" He growled. "I'm supposed to be undercover, for the gods' sakes!"

The ghost of a pretty woman with a stab wound in her chest frowned at him. "What do mean, my lord? Are you not here to take us to the Underworld?"

"No."

"Then what - "

"I... well - You don't need to know." Nico sighed, releasing the ghosts. "Just - leave me alone and pretend you don't know me, okay?"

The lady nodded. "Would you like us to inform the other ghosts, too, sir?"

He nodded back at her. Then... "Wait - _other_ ghosts? How many of you are there?"

"Oh... around one-hundred or so, sir."

Nico's eyes widened. _Holy Hades._

* * *

The son of Hades crept into the Slytherin dormitories, muttering curses under his breath. _One hundred._ There were _one hundred_ unregistered ghosts in Hogwarts. No wonder his dad hated the place. How had so many ghosts escaped judgement?

_Because of me, of course. I granted them passage out of the underworld._ A voice sounded in his head. Nico jumped. He knew that voice - he'd heard it in the House of Hades.

_Hecate?_

_Yes. And because of your foolishness, I had to waste three minutes wiping the memories of my wizards. Three. Whole. Minutes._

_Uh... why?_

_You were screaming about the gods and thrashing in your sleep! Why do you think?!_

Oh... right. _So, where are you now?_

_Leaving. But be warned, son of Hades - if this happens again, I will personally send you to your father the hard way. You cannot afford to make any more mistakes. Curse the Fates' decision. Your sister Hazel would have done so much better._

Now, where had he heard _that_ before?

He knew it was true, of course. But it still hurt to be reminded of his own inferiority to... well, everyone. Nico sighed, running his hand through his unkempt black hair. He probably deserved it, anyway. He'd done nothing in his remembered life except destroy and ruin. What else would he expect in return?

Falling into the nearest empty bed, Nico dropped into a dark, troubled sleep.

* * *

The next morning...

Was just as horrendous as the night before. Nico had woken up early, before the other Slytherins, so it was still dark out; inky purple light glowing through the open window - not quite dawn, but light enough. He slowly padded into the bathrooms, back aching like fire, but still sighing in relief. At least a few minutes of privacy before his first day in this Tartarus-hole.

That was when the first Iris Messages began to bombard him.

"NICO DI ANGELO!"

_Oh, gods._ Nico could probably deal with most of his friends right now - even Percy - but not _him._ Not -

An angry Will Solace floated in the mist above the sinks. "Where have you _been?_ (Insert multiple censored curses here.) We've been searching _everywhere!_ You could have been _killed,_ for all we knew!"

"S-sorry?" Nico had no idea how to respond to the (yet another) scary blonde. Will was just so - so -

"SORRY?! That's _all_ you have to say? After shadow-traveling to who-knows-where and scaring the living Hades out of all of us?! Where even _are_ you, anyway?"

"Will, relax, I'm fine. I'm in Scotland right now, on a quest for my father - "

"SCOTLAND? ON A _QUEST_?! What is wrong with you?! You are in no state to be on the other side of the world, much less a _quest!_ "

"Will - I really am fine. Your brother - Aesculapius - healed me." Well, sort of.

"But you've still been missing for _two days!_ We've tried Iris-Messaging you before too, only they led to the Underworld, and we thought you were dead, or abducted by a crazy cow goddess, but then Rachel said you weren't and - and - "

The guy was bordering between uncontrollable anger and hysteria. Nico suddenly wanted to hide in a hole.

Fortunately, something flickered in Nico's peripheral vision. Another call. "Oh, sorry Will. I've got an Iris-Message from Camp Jupiter. Bye!" He quickly cut the connection. Phew.

"Di Angelo." Reyna's voice sounded behind him.

_Oh,_ gods.

Needless to say, Nico was _not_ in a good mood by the time he left that infernal bathroom.

* * *

As Nico headed up to breakfast, he (irritatingly) noted the looks of disgust and contempt were shot his way as he passed students of the other Houses. So Draco hadn't been lying. Well, then. Another thing to add to his list of problems this year - and he hadn't even realized that he _had_ a list.

_School, Riddle, Hecate, Will, Umbridge lady..._

Counting off all of the Fates' punishments, he followed a group of Ravenclaw girls into the Great Hall, slumping onto a seat at the Slytherin table in ultimate despair. The mood wasn't improved - soon after, a horde of owls flew in, carrying various packages, screeching and clawing and demanding payment in dead rats.

So... this was wizard mail. How fun.

The raven that had been with Nico at the beginning of this mess was also among the group, carrying a small narrow box in its exceedingly sharp claws. Landing on his (unsurprisingly empty) plate, it dropped the package in front of him. Cautiously, Nico opened it.

Inside, nestled in layers of red velvet, was a thin black stick, about a foot in length. There was a note attached.

_This is your wand. It is thirteen inches, made of black underworld poplar, with a core of... well, you'll see. You'll need him later._

_Lots of love and death threats,_

_Hecate_

Raising an eyebrow skeptically at the note, Nico picked up the wand. Immediately, he felt a rush of power, the temperature around him decreasing dramatically. The younger students sitting near him (and quite a few of the older ones, too) edged away quickly.

Nico put down the wand.

He frowned at it, warily now, wondering what was inside. What the core was - why it was a _him_. Nico had been dropped into a world of crazy wizards, but even this, surely, was not normal. Or maybe it was. Who was he to judge?

A pale hand belonging to his Head of House (what was his name again? Severed... Snake?) slid something else onto his plate... both literally _and_ metaphorically.

It was his class schedule.

_History of Magic, double Potions, Divination, and double -_ wait a minute. _Defense_ Against _the Dark Arts? I am the Dark Arts!_

Nico wasn't stupid, he _had_ read some of the more interesting text books on a train ride; he knew raising hordes of zombies and disappearing into shadows were not examples of being a good law-abiding wizard.

But then... _Since when have I ever been good and law-abiding?_

He would desperately enjoy watching the wizards teach him Defense Against _Himself_...

The professor was Dolores Umbridge.

... Or not.

Somewhere in the world, the Fates cackled with glee.

* * *

History of Magic was, by common consent, the most boring subject ever devised by Wizard-kind. Professor Binns, their ghost teacher, had a wheezy, droning voice that was almost guaranteed to cause severe drowsiness within ten minutes, five in warm weather.

Or so Nico had been told.

There was just one tiny detail keeping Nico and his class from experiencing this torment.

Professor Binns was a _ghost_.

Nico di Angelo was the _Ghost_ _King._

So when the scrawny, fourteen year old emo boy stomped in, rudely demanding a private word with Binns... well, all students had been dismissed, hurried out of the classroom as fast as possible, with hasty privacy shields were put up between them, so as not to anger him.

As the last of the students trickled out of the door, shooting suspicious glances behind them ( _cough,_ Golden Trio, _cough_ ), Nico leaned back on the desk and scrutinized the trembling ghost before him.

"S-so... what does Your Highness require of me?"

Inwardly, Nico groaned. This ghost must have been an old fashioned one, with all the stupid fancy titles and whatnot. _Great._

"None of that _Your Highness_ stuff, just Lord or Master is fine." Sadly, he knew it would be futile to get the ghost to call him Nico. They were just so _polite._ "As for what I want... well, to tell you the truth, I just wanted to get out of class."

He smirked at Binns's indignant glare.

"But since I'm here and we're alone..."

An audible gulp.

"I'd like some information. Anything about, oh, a certain - _Tom Marvolo Riddle?_ "

The ghost's eyes widened. "You're seeking _You-Know Who_? Oh, gods have mercy on us all, Your Highness."

"I _told_ you not to call me - oh, never mind. But wait... he calls himself _Voldemort_ now? Isn't that _Flight from Death_ in French?"

Huh. Well, that plan wouldn't work. Thanatos had wings.

"Yes, Your Highness. He leads a group of Muggle and Muggle-born haters called Death Eaters, who are trying to 'purge' the world of the non-magical beings - "

"Death _Eaters?_ Oh, trust me, I am _pretty_ sure Thanatos would taste terrible." Like really, really terrible. Nico was not a supporter of cannibalism.

"I suppose, Your Highness, but no one except the Potter child and his allies truly believe the Death Eaters are back - especially not Voldemort, who is thought to be still dead. The Ministry of Magic has been printing off all sorts of silly propaganda about him being a liar. I, for one - "

"Wait - the British Wizarding government isn't even _doing_ anything about it? I'm in this alone?" Well, that really wasn't surprising.

"Yes, Your Highness - I'm afraid so. I would help you, but..." Binns looked down at his misty hands. "Information is all I can give, for now."

Nico nodded. He still wasn't surprised.

But at least, it was a start.

* * *

**A/N:I have finished. Reviewers get a digital zombie chauffeur.**

***Also, I give _mucho_ thanks to beazlerat who has now helped me figure out Nico's love interest. ** **You can all guess who the lucky guy is. It shouldn't be hard.**


	4. Haunting Memory

**Disclaimer:**

**Nico: You do not own me. Now go away, and leave me to mope.**

**Me: But I have to finish this fanfic... and quit breaking the fourth wall!**

***Hecate wipes character memories and reinforces metaphorical wall into steel.***

"Settle down," said Snape coldly, shutting the door behind him. There was no real need for the call to order; the moment the class had heard the door close, quiet had fallen and all fidgeting stopped. Snape's mere presence was usually enough to ensure a class's silence.

Suddenly, the door slammed open, revealing a panting Nico. The class turned in surprise.

"Sorry... I got lost."

Snape raised an eyebrow, but said nothing - not even commenting on Nico's dark muggle attire. Harry gritted his teeth at this obvious display of favor towards Slytherins, but tried to hold his tongue.

After Nico had found a seat in the back of the room, Snape continued.

"Before we begin today's lesson," said Snape, sweeping over to his desk and staring around at them all, "I think it appropriate to remind you that next June you will be sitting an important examination, during which you will prove how much you have learned about the composition and use of magical potions. Moronic though some of this class undoubtedly are, I expect you to scrape an 'Acceptable' in your O.W.L., or suffer my... displeasure."

His gaze lingered this time upon Nico, who looked unimpressed. Snape nodded in approval.

"After this year, of course, many of you will cease studying with me," Snape went on. "I take only the very best into my N.E.W.T. Potions class, which means that some of us will certainly be saying good-bye."

His eyes rested on Harry and his lip curled. Harry glared back, feeling a grim pleasure at the idea that he would be able to give up Potions after fifth year.

"But we have another year to go before that happy moment of farewell," said Snape softly, "So whether you are intending to attempt N.E.W.T. or not, I advise all of you to concentrate your efforts upon maintaining the high-pass level I have come to expect from my O.W.L. students.

"Today we will be mixing a potion that often comes up at Ordinary Wizarding Level: the Draught of Peace, a potion to calm anxiety and soothe agitation. Be warned: If you are too heavy-handed with the ingredients you will put the drinker into a heavy and sometimes irreversible sleep, so you will need to pay close attention to what you are doing." On Harry's left, Hermione sat up a little straighter, her expression one of the utmost attentiveness. "The ingredients and method" - Snape flicked his wand - "are on the blackboard" - (they appeared there) - "you will find everything you need" - he flicked his wand again - "in the store cupboard" - (the door of the said cupboard sprang open) - "you have an hour and a half... Start."

Snape could hardly have set them a more difficult, fiddly potion. The ingredients had to be added to the cauldron in precisely the right order and quantities; the mixture had to be stirred exactly the right number of times, firstly in clockwise, then in counterclockwise directions; the heat of the flames on which it was simmering had to be lowered to exactly the right level for a specific number of minutes before the final ingredient was added. Strangely, di Angelo seemed to have no problem, adding ingredients and following the instructions with ease.

"A light silver vapor should now be rising from your potion," called Snape, with ten minutes left to go.

Harry, who was sweating profusely, looked desperately around the dungeon. His own cauldron was issuing copious amounts of dark gray steam; Ron's was spitting green sparks. Seamus was feverishly prodding the flames at the base of his cauldron with the tip of his wand, as they had gone out. The surface of Nico's potion, however, was a shimmering mist of silver vapor, and as Snape swept by, he nodded in encouragement.

"Ten points to Mr. Di Angelo, for his exemplar potion."

At Harry's cauldron, however, Snape stopped, looking down at Harry with a horrible smirk on his face.

"Potter, what is this supposed -"

_A crash sounded in the hallway outside._

_Gathering up his robes, Snape headed over to the door, an unreadable expression on his face. "Stay here."_

_As if Harry could go anywhere else._

_The professor flung the door open, prepared to scold whoever had made that noise. Suddenly, he was knocked over, and a giant_ thing _flew into the room._

_It looked to be part bird and part slime, screeching and clawing at everything in sight. Harry stared at it in horror as it descended upon him, dripping green goop and feathers everywhere. It flew closer and closer, sharp beak pointed straight at his forehead - and he could do nothing but stare in muted shock as it came in for the kill..._

_Slime splattered all over him. Nico di Angelo stood over the mess, sword raised. A gentle snowfall of yellow dust rained down on the ruined classroom._

_"Γαμώ." The Italian boy spoke spoke in a language that was definitely not Italian. "Hecate, a little help? I know you might kill me, but I really have no control over monster attacks. Also, I thought Hogwarts was warded against them."_

What? Monster attacks? _Harry thought._ What does he mean?

_But then he was falling, falling into an abyss that opened up beneath him..._

"- to be?" Snape stood over him, a triumphant expression twisting his features. Harry shook himself out of his daydream - funny, he didn't even remember what it was about. But there were more pressing matters. Like his potion, which was now threatening to explode.

"It's the Draught of Peace," He muttered.

"Tell me, Potter," said Snape softly, "Can you read?"

Draco Malfoy laughed.

"Yes, I can," said Harry, his fingers clenched tightly around his wand.

"Read the third line of the instructions for me, Potter."

Harry squinted at the blackboard; it was not easy to make out the instructions through the haze of multicolored steam now filling the dungeon.

"'Add powdered moonstone, stir three times counterclockwise, allow to simmer for seven minutes, then add two drops of syrup of hellebore.'"

His heart sank. He had not added syrup of hellebore, but had proceeded straight to the fourth line of the instructions after allowing his potion to simmer for seven minutes.

"Did you do everything on the third line, Potter?"

"No," said Harry very quietly.

"I beg your pardon?"

"No," said Harry, more loudly. "I forgot the hellebore..."

"I know you did, Potter, which means that this mess is utterly worthless. _Evanesco._ "

The contents of Harry's potion vanished; he was left standing foolishly beside an empty cauldron.

"Those of you who _have_ managed to read the instructions, fill one flagon with a sample of your potion, label it clearly with your name, and bring it up to my desk for testing," said Snape. "Homework: twelve inches of parchment on the properties of moonstone and its uses in potion-making, to be handed in on Thursday."

While everyone around him filled their flagons, Harry cleared away his things, seething. His potion had been no worse than Ron's, which was now giving off a foul odor of bad eggs, or Neville's, which had achieved the consistency of just-mixed cement and which Neville was now having to gouge out of his cauldron, yet it was he, Harry, who would be receiving zero marks for the day's work. He stuffed his wand back into his bag and slumped down onto his seat, watching everyone else march up to Snape's desk with filled and corked flagons. When at long last the bell rang, Harry was first out of the dungeons; stomping away and muttering every imaginable curse he could come up with in his head.

No one noticed Nico di Angelo, who was inexplicably covered in a disgusting green goop, melt quietly away into the shadows.

* * *

Nico stormed into the Slytherin dorms, after shadow traveling into the Forbidden Forest and proceeding to destroy everything. Luckily everyone was having classes, so no one was there to see the black-haired demigod radiate death and shadows in the dimly lit dungeon - or they would have surely passed out from utter shock at the raw power he was exuding.

Said demigod did not care about any of that though, as he angrily returned to the bathroom that he had sworn _not_ to return to.

_Of all the rotten luck in a world of Fates..._ Nico thought to himself. He looked down at the potion flask tied securely to his waist. At least one thing had gone right today. The Draught of Peace had been ridiculously similar to the healing potions he had helped Lou Ellen make after the war. He took a quick sip of it now.

Slowly, his buzzing anger faded, leaving him feeling calmer. He undressed, climbing into a shower and carefully avoiding the mirror. He knew what he would see: long gashes from a cruel whip lining his back. It had already begun to ache; now that the adrenaline and anger had faded.

He turned on the water and closed his eyes, unintentionally losing himself in the unfortunate memory:

_Nico felt himself burning with anger and sorrow as the next set of visions sent by the love jerk, a.k.a Eros, began to plague him._

Will, turning away in disgust and shame, Percy calling him a fag, and Hazel - Hazel leaving him, saying he wasn't worthy of being her brother...

_"Stop!" He glared up at the ceiling of Eros's new temple._ _Jason had sent him here after construction had finished a few weeks ago, happily tittering about_ Solangelo, _whatever that was._

_Little had either boy expected the terrible outcome that ensued._

_Suddenly filled with an unexplainable fury, Nico lashed out, cursing Eros with every insult possible, Stygian iron blade slicing through the altar. Black hellfire sprang up through the widening cracks in the marble floor. The building began to crumble, and then he was burning... burning in his own power as the black flames ate away at everything in their path..._

_He woke up on Half-Blood Hill, shackled around his wrists and ankles in black chains; a scene of chaos before him._

_All of Camp Half-Blood's residents were assembled at the bottom of the hill, many shouting and running around in confusion, except for a few of the cabin counselors: Percy and Jason were protesting against something, with Chiron holding them back; Piper and Annabeth were together, occasionally muttering a few words to the other and looking up at him with scared expressions. Will Solace stood off to the side, pale with shock and worry._

_There were other reactions too, ranging from indifference to sadness, but Nico only noticed that of his friends before_ he _appeared._

_Eros, white wings outstretched, arose in a brilliant flash of light._

_"NICO DI ANGELO." He boomed. "You have insulted me and destroyed my rightful property - the property of a god. This is a violation of the Ancient Laws. Now you must face the punishment of doing so._ _Equivalent exchange, half-blood. To defile my sacred grounds, what will you pay in return?"_

_A gleaming whip appeared in Eros's hands, seven strands of braided rope stemming from the handle, intertwined with jagged thorns. Nico suddenly realized what was happening, his breath hitching with fear._ No...

_Camp Half-Blood had a similar reaction, campers freezing and looking at the god in horror. Some rushed forward, but were blocked by an invisible wall._

_As if on cue, Zephyrus appeared. His easy smile and laid back attitude were gone, replaced by a cold mask of anger. A raised platform shimmered into existence behind him, whispering promises of unimaginable pain._

_He dragged Nico onto it, despite the latter's struggling, and forced him into a kneeling position; securing the chains into metal hooks that were protruding from the wooden planks._

_Nico's shirt was ripped off._

_Some of the older campers began to escort the younger ones away, only to find themselves blocked by another force field. Eros clearly wanted all to see him torture his least favorite demigod._

_The god stepped onto the platform, towering over the fourteen year old's prone form. Savoring the moment, Eros raised the whip._

_CRACK!_

_Seven bloody lines were carved into Nico's back. Unbearable pain lanced through him, and he cried out, gasping. Angry shouts came from the campers below, and many tried to knock down the invisible barrier to get to him. Nico felt an uncharacteristic rush of gratitude._

_It dissipated quickly as the next lash descended._

_CRACK!_

_Agony shook his body as lash after lash marred his back into a bloody mess. Tears fell from his face as he struggled against the bonds that were holding him down. Finally, hanging his head in shame, Nico screamed._

_"I'M SORRY! Just please... please stop!" He continued pleading, trying to end the torture._

_But Eros paid him no heed, whipping him over and over and over..._

_Nico's vision darkened and he fell into the oblivious canyon of unconsciousness._

Nico jerked out of his daze, water dripping down his face. He stepped out of the shower and looked up at the clock.

_Crap._ He'd missed Divination. That meant...

Defense Against the Dark Arts. With a pink toad.

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry Nico. That was sadistic... but necessary. Hopefully you guys won't hate me too much -**

**Nico: *summons zombie to kill me***

**Me: AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! Alright, fine! You probably will hate me! A lot!**


	5. La Cagna Rosa

**Disclaimer: This is getting ridiculous. I am in no way good enough to own these characters.**

When Nico entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom he found Professor Umbridge already seated at the teacher's desk, wearing the fluffy pink cardigan of the night before and a black velvet bow on top of her head. Nico bit his lip, forcing himself not to puke in her presence. He took a seat in the very back of the classroom.

"Well, good afternoon!" she said when the whole class had finally settled down.

Nico scowled back at her. His afternoon had been anything but good - heck, he'd even missed lunch!

"Tut, tut, Mr. Di Angelo. You may be a transfer student, but that does not give you the right to dress like a disgusting muggle hooligan. Fifteen points from Slytherin."

Nico did not reply. He was too busy trying to control himself not to _kill_ the ugly toad woman.

Umbridge turned back to the class. "Now, I should like you all, please, to reply 'Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge,' when I say 'Good afternoon, class.' One more time, please. Good afternoon, class!"

"Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge," the class - sans Nico - chanted back at her.

"There, now," said Professor Umbridge sweetly. "That wasn't too difficult, was it? Wands away and quills out, please."

Many of the class exchanged gloomy looks; the order "wands away" had never yet been followed by a lesson they had found interesting. Nico, however, breathed a sigh of relief. He had not wanted to use his wand yet; lest he blow his cover (again). He had a sneaking suspicion Hecate would not be so lenient a third time. Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, extracted her own wand, which was an unusually short one, and tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once:

Defense Against the Dark Arts

A Return to Basic Principles.

"Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn't it?" stated Professor Umbridge, turning to face the class with her hands clasped neatly in front of her. "The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your O.W.L. year."

_Constant changing of teachers?_ Nico wondered what that meant.

"You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theorycentered, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please."

She rapped the blackboard again; the first message vanished and was replaced by:

Course aims:

1 Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.

2 Learning to recognize situations in which defensive magic can legally be used.

3 Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use.

For a couple of minutes the room was full of the sound of scratching quills on parchment. Nico pulled out a pen - because no matter how superior in magic, wizards were idiotically medieval - rolling his eyes at the inquisitive looks sent his way.

He wrote:

My course aims:

1 Make Umbridge's life miserable.

2 Kill Tom Riddle.

3 Make sure both go to Hades.

When everyone except for Nico had copied down Professor Umbridge's three course aims she said, "Has everybody got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

There was a dull murmur of assent throughout the class. Nico frowned. He did have the textbook, but it had been incredibly dull and he hadn't even gotten through ten pages on the train before throwing it down and attempting to stab it with his sword.

"I think we'll try that again," said Professor Umbridge. "When I ask you a question, I should like you to reply 'Yes, Professor Umbridge,' or 'No, Professor Umbridge.' So, has everyone got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

"Yes, Professor Umbridge," rang through the room - again, sans Nico.

"Good," said Professor Umbridge. "I should like you to turn to page five and read chapter one, 'Basics for Beginners.' There will be no need to talk."

Nico proceeded to add a very rude drawing to his "course aims" paper. Hazel had taught him well.

The bushy haired girl from the carriage ride had, like him, not even opened her copy of Defensive Magical Theory. She was staring fixedly at Professor Umbridge with her hand in the air. Nico raised an eyebrow. She didn't strike him as one to neglect to read when instructed to, or even resist the temptation to open any book that came under her nose... so what was going on?

After several more minutes had passed, however, Nico was not the only one watching the girl. The chapter they had been instructed to read was probably so tedious that more and more people were choosing to watch her mute attempt to catch Professor Umbridge's eye than to struggle on with "Basics for Beginners."

When more than half the class were staring at the girl rather than at their books, Professor Umbridge seemed to decide that she could ignore the situation no longer.

"Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?" she asked the Gryffindor girl, as though she had only just noticed her.

Nico's opinion of the woman went down another notch. He hadn't even thought that was possible.

"Not about the chapter, no," said the bushy haired girl.

"Well, we're reading just now," said Professor Umbridge, showing her small, pointed teeth. "If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of class."

"I've got a query about your course aims." The girl frowned. Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows.

"And your name is — ?"

"Hermione Granger," she said.

"Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully," said Professor Umbridge in a voice of determined sweetness.

"Well, I don't," said Hermione bluntly. "There's nothing written up there about using defensive spells."

Nico watched them go back and forth in amusement. He kind of wanted to see Umbridge lose her temper... although if that became the case, he really didn't want to deal with any consequences.

"Using defensive spells?" Professor Umbridge repeated with a little laugh. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?"

_I am,_ Nico thought. _It already happened once, didn't it?_

"We're not going to use magic?" Ron Weasley ejaculated loudly.

"Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr. - ?"

"Weasley," said Ron, thrusting his hand into the air.

Professor Umbridge, smiling still more widely, turned her back on him. Harry and Hermione immediately raised their hands too. Professor Umbridge's pouchy eyes lingered on Harry for a moment before she addressed Hermione.

"Yes, Miss Granger? You wanted to ask something else?"

"Yes," said Hermione. "Surely the whole point of Defense Against the Dark Arts is to practice defensive spells?"

"Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger?" asked Professor Umbridge in her falsely sweet voice.

"No, but -"

_Exactly._ Nico screamed inside his head. _That's why she's right!_

"Well then, I'm afraid you are not qualified to decide what the 'whole point' of any class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised our new program of study. You will be learning about defensive spells in a secure, risk-free way -"

_Doubt it._ Nico thought maliciously. _With you, there's always some risk to the human health._

"What use is that?" Harry, who was sitting in front of Nico, said loudly. "If we're going to be attacked it won't be in a -"

"Hand, Mr. Potter!" sang Professor Umbridge.

Harry thrust his fist in the air. Professor Umbridge promptly turned away from him again, but now several other people had their hands up too.

"And your name is?" Professor Umbridge said to another Gryffindor boy.

"Dean Thomas."

"Well, Mr. Thomas?"

"Well, it's like Harry said, isn't it?" said Dean. "If we're going to be attacked, it won't be risk-free -"

"I repeat," said Professor Umbridge, smiling in a very irritating fashion at Dean, "do you expect to be attacked during my classes?"

"No, but -"

_You should._ Nico frowned, seriously, this argument was getting ridiculous.

Professor Umbridge talked over Dean. "I do not wish to criticize the way things have been run in this school," she said, an unconvincing smile stretching her wide mouth, "but you have been exposed to some very irresponsible wizards in this class, very irresponsible indeed - not to mention," she gave a nasty little laugh, "extremely dangerous half-breeds."

Nico gritted his teeth. Now _that_ had been insulting. Wait a minute… did she know? A quick glance at her oblivious face told him that she didn't. Perhaps another half human had taught Hogwarts at some point.

"If you mean Professor Lupin," piped up Dean Thomas angrily, confirming Nico's suspicions, "He was the best we ever -"

"Hand, Mr. Thomas! As I was saying - you have been introduced to spells that have been complex, inappropriate to your age group, and potentially lethal. You have been frightened into believing that you are likely to meet Dark attacks every other day -"

"No we haven't," Hermione said, "we just -"

"Your hand is not up, Miss Granger!"

Hermione put up her hand; Professor Umbridge turned away from her.

"It is my understanding that my predecessor not only performed illegal curses in front of you, he actually performed them on you -"

Now that was interesting. Nico sat up straighter, listening more intently.

"Well, he turned out to be a maniac, didn't he?" said Dean Thomas hotly. "Mind you, we still learned loads -"

_A… maniac? Okay…_

"Your hand is not up, Mr. Thomas!" trilled Professor Umbridge. "Now, it is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more than sufficient to get you through your examination, which, after all, is what school is all about. And your name is?" she added, staring at another girl, whose hand had just shot up.

"Parvati Patil, and isn't there a practical bit in our Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L.? Aren't we supposed to show that we can actually do the counter curses and things?"

"As long as you have studied the theory hard enough, there is no reason why you should not be able to perform the spells under carefully controlled examination conditions," said Professor Umbridge dismissively.

_Oh, and facing Tom Riddle will be under "carefully controlled" circumstances?_ Nico scowled harder.

"Without ever practicing them before?" said Parvati incredulously. "Are you telling us that the first time we'll get to do the spells will be during our exam?"

"I repeat, as long as you have studied the theory hard enough -"

"And what good's theory going to be in the real world?" said Harry loudly, his fist in the air again. Professor Umbridge looked up.

"This is school, Mr. Potter, not the real world," she said softly.

"So we're not supposed to be prepared for what's waiting out there?"

"There is nothing waiting out there, Mr. Potter."

Alright, this was getting too far. Nico decided to interject.

"Uh, are you really _that_ deluded?"

Professor Umbridge looked over at him. "Well then, who do you imagine wants to attack children like yourselves?" She inquired in a horribly honeyed voice.

_Oh, I don't know… Probably nearly every single monster I've ever met?_

"Hmm, let's think . . ." said Harry in a mock thoughtful voice, "Maybe Lord Voldemort?"

_Well, that works too,_ although Nico snorted at the name.

This was not the reaction of the rest of the class; Ron gasped; Lavender Brown uttered a little scream; Neville slipped sideways off his stool. Professor Umbridge, however, did not flinch. She was staring at Harry with a grimly satisfied expression on her face.

_Uh oh._

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Potter. Now, let me make a few things quite plain."

Professor Umbridge stood up and leaned toward them, her stubby fingered hands splayed on her desk. Nico had a sudden sadistic desire to cut them off.

"You have been told that a certain Dark wizard has returned from the dead -"

"He isn't dead." Nico's voice rang throughout the room. "He hasn't been dead for fifteen years."

"Yeah, he's returned!" Harry looked a little surprised to see Nico on the same side. "And now he's after all of wizarding kind -"

"Mr.-Potter-you-have-already-lost-your-House-ten-points-do-not-make-matters-worse-for-yourself," said Professor Umbridge in one breath without looking at him. "As I was saying, you have been informed that a certain Dark wizard is at large once again. This is a lie."

"It is NOT a lie!" said Harry. "I saw him, I fought him!"

Well. Nico hadn't know that. Maybe that's why Harry could see the thestrals…

"Harry's right. You Ministry idiots need to pull your big heads out of your (censored phrase) and realize what's happening. Voldie isn't going to stay put for long - he'll definitely come after you guys next."

Nico didn't know how right he was - though not in the way he'd expected.

"Detention, Mr. Potter, Mr. Di Angelo!" said Professor Umbridge triumphantly. "Starting tomorrow evening for this entire week. Five o'clock. My office. I repeat, this is a lie. The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours. If someone is alarming you with fibs about reborn Dark wizards, I would like to hear about it. I am here to help. I am your friend. And now, you will kindly continue your reading. Page five, 'Basics for Beginners.'"

Professor Umbridge sat down behind her desk again. Harry, however, stood up. Everyone was staring at him; Seamus looked half-scared, half-fascinated.

"Harry, no!" Hermione whispered in a warning voice, tugging at the older boy's sleeve, but Harry jerked his arm out of her reach.

"So, according to you, Cedric Diggory dropped dead of his own accord, did he?" Harry asked, his voice shaking.

_There was a death here?_ Nico's eyes widened. _He could probably use that to his advantage…_

"Cedric Diggory's death was a tragic accident," Professor Umbridge said coldly.

Nico was going to prove her wrong.

* * *

Missing dinner again, Nico went in search of a brazier. He _was_ getting hungry, no matter how little he usually ate.

He headed towards Dumbledore's office, after asking directions from a ghost. Arriving in front of the gargoyle, he muttered, "Fizzing Whizbees."

It sprang aside, and he made his way up the escalator-thingy. Reaching the top, he knocked on the door.

"Come in." Said a voice.

He opened the door and stepped into a circular chamber, filled with strange instruments and books. The Sorting Hat, which was sitting on a high shelf, quivered when he entered.

"Ah, Mr. Di Angelo." Dumbledore was sitting behind a large desk that was as equally cluttered as the rest of the room. He didn't looked surprised to see Nico. "What brings you to my office?"

"Well… I was kind of…" Nico bit his lip, trying to make the sentence sound normal. "... wondering if I could have a… miniature brazier?"

That hadn't sounded weird at _all._

Dumbledore was surprised at this. "Why, may I ask, would you require one?"

"Well… I have a sort of religion, where I can't eat until I sacrifice some food to the gods - and, well, I'm getting kinda hungry."

The professor looked inquisitive, but he nodded. With a wave of his wand, a tiny gold brazier gently burned in Nico's hand.

"It will only burn the food that you offer it."

Nico stared at the old man in surprise. He hadn't been expecting Dumbledore to agree, much less be so helpful. Maybe he had underestimated him.

"T-thanks. I really appreciate it." (Despite popular belief, Nico di Angelo does have manners from the 1940's… at least when he chooses to use them.)

"I do not want my students starving to death."

"Yeah… may I go, now?" Nico _really_ wanted to get some food before dinner was over.

Dumbledore inclined his head, and Nico left, feeling a bit better about his overall situation.

After all, "dying of starvation" was the first problem to be crossed off his list.

**A/N: Surprise! Early chapter... although I admit I mostly copy & pasted the dialogue during Umbridge's class. Oh well... At least I incorporated Nico into it.**

**Nico: You better have. I'm much too important to be left out.**

**Me: Since when did you become Octavian?**

**Nico: *summons more zombies***

**Me: Will you stop that! *runs***


	6. Punishment

**Disclaimer: I don't own. Not even a little bit. *wallows in ultimate despair***

**Nico: Hey! That's what _I_ do!**

***The fourth wall has developed a sentience and is now also wallowing in despair, as it continues to be broken into tiny pieces.***

The next morning passed in a blur, in which Will IMed Nico again at breakfast (earning him some strange looks from the wizards), and forced him to eat some toast. The same happened at lunch and Nico was now sure he would explode from eating so much in such a short time (his diet usually consisted of one piece of fruit a day).

Soon, it was time for Care of Magical Creatures with Professor… Grub-Plankton? Something like that. Nico slowly followed behind Draco Malfoy and his group of Slytherin admirers - who were very maturely running around and laughing like idiots, as their leader made a joke about Harry Potter (yet again).

A clump of sticks were brought out and introduced as "bowtruckles".

… _Tiny dryads?_

But as Nico watched, they stood up and revealed themselves to be what looked like tiny pixieish creatures made of wood, each with knobbly brown arms and legs, two twig-like fingers at the end of each hand, and a funny, flat, bark-like face in which a pair of beetle-brown eyes glittered. They were definitely _not_ dryads. Eyes widening, he scowled, suddenly recognizing what they were. He had never seen one in person before, but they'd been described to him many times during his stays in the Underworld. ραβδί ανδρών - creations of Persephone.

This suspicion was confirmed as all of them simultaneously turned and hissed at him. Nico tried to back away, but soon found himself surrounded by the little creatures. They pointed their sharp fingers at him, hissing in Ancient Greek:

" _Son of Hades… die die die... Hades's son… die now."_

"Blimey!" Someone shouted behind him. "What's going on?"

Nico's fingers itched to draw his sword. But he needed to keep undercover… Sighing, he took out his wand, unsure of what to do with it. Before he could decide, however, the black wand jerked in his hand, emitting a gray steam. The bowtruckles' eyes glossed over in terror. Chittering and screeching, they ran off into the woods, much to Nico's (and everyone else's) astonishment. His ADHD ran wild.

_Okay, that was kind of creepy… almost like my wand was sentient. Wait - the core was a "him"! Could it be? No… Father would never allow it. But Hecate made it - and she's never liked Hades anyway…_ Nico shook his head, confused. He'd ask Hades about it later.

Meanwhile, Professor Grubbly-Plank was glaring at him. "Five points from Slytherin for provoking the bowtruckles. Everyone now has a three foot long essay on them for homework."

Many of Nico's classmates shot him dirty looks at this.

_Hey! It's not my fault for existing!_ Nico sighed. So much for staying undercover.

He headed back to the dorms, deciding to skip the last period of the day - the Slytherins had Transfiguration which equaled use of wands. Nico was definitely sure - no matter how powerful his wand - that he could not do real "wizard" magic yet.

Besides, he needed to figure out a plan for his upcoming detention.

* * *

At five, Nico slowly dragged himself out of bed, cursing Umbridge in five different languages (English, Italian, Ancient Greek, Latin, and he'd learned a little French from Piper), and left for her office on the third floor.

When he entered it, he was nearly sick all over again. The surfaces had all been draped in lace covers and cloths. There were several vases full of dried flowers, each residing on its own doily, and on one of the walls was a collection of ornamental plates, each decorated with a large technicolor kitten wearing a different bow around its neck.

_Gods of Olympus…_ He gaped in horror. _What disgusting spirit could possibly be possessing Umbridge?_ There was almost next to nothing of a chance that someone could be _this_ horrible.

Harry came in behind him, with a similar reaction. Both boys stared, utterly transfixed at the nightmarish scene before them.

"Good evening, Mr. Potter, Mr. Di Angelo."

They both jumped; Umbridge herself was wearing a disgustingly flowered set of robes that blended only too well with the tablecloth on the desk behind her.

This was going to be _so_ fun, wasn't it?

"Well, sit down," she said, pointing toward a small table draped in lace beside which she had drawn up two straight-backed chairs. Two pieces of blank parchment lay on the table, apparently waiting for them.

Muttering in Italian, Nico slumped into one of the seats, glaring at the revolting "decorations" around him. Seriously, they were anything but decorative.

"Er," said Harry, who was still standing in the doorway. "Professor Umbridge? Er - before we start, I-I wanted to ask you a… a favor."

Her bulging eyes narrowed. "Oh yes?"

"Well I'm . . . I'm on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. And I was supposed to be at the tryouts for the new Keeper at five o'clock on Friday and I was - was wondering whether I could skip detention that night and do it - do it another night... instead..."

"Oh no," said Umbridge, smiling so widely that she looked as though she had just swallowed a particularly juicy fly. "Oh no, no, no. This is your punishment for spreading evil, nasty, attention-seeking stories, Mr. Potter, and punishments certainly cannot be adjusted to suit the guilty one's convenience. No, you will come here at five o'clock tomorrow, and the next day, and on Friday too, and you and Mr. Di Angelo will do your detentions as planned. I think it rather a good thing that you are missing something you really want to do. It ought to reinforce the lesson I am trying to teach you."

Before Harry could reply (and make matters worse), Nico interjected.

"Your lesson… which is what, exactly?"

Umbridge smiled sweetly. "You'll have to find out, out course! The message will _sink in…_ soon enough. Now, take a seat, Mr. Potter, you two'll be doing lines for me today."

As both boys began to rummage in their bags for a quill/pen, Umbridge interrupted. "No, not with your own quill. You're going to be using a rather special one of mine. Here you are."

She handed them both long, thin black quills with unusually sharp points. That was when everything went wrong.

As soon as Nico touched the cursed quill, it sent a jagged knife of pain shooting through his entire body. Gasping, he let out a bloodcurdling scream and dropped onto the ground, convulsing.

Harry stared at the younger boy in horror. He too was holding one of Umbridge's quills; and he was perfectly fine - so he didn't understand why Nico would have such a violent reaction to it. Suddenly, to his shock, Nico began to bleed, a pool of blood formed on the floor.

Umbridge let out a little shriek. "My carpet! Oh, that was a gift from the Minister of Magic himself!"

Harry stared at the woman in disgust. Here was a helpless boy, convulsing and possibly dying, and all Umbridge could care about was her _carpet?_ But he couldn't ponder this any longer, as Nico had suddenly become eerily still, barely breathing. He needed help, fast.

" _Levicorpus."_ Harry cast a floating spell on the boy. Quickly, he ran outside, Nico floating behind him; despite Umbridge's protests. He made his way to the infirmary, bursting through the doors.

"Madame Pomfrey! Oi!"

Madame Pomfrey bustled over, preparing to scold him for disturbing her patients, when she saw Nico's motionless form behind him. "Oh, dear. Get him onto the bed, please. And take off his shirt while you're at it."

Grimacing, Harry dropped Nico face-first onto a bed. He gripped the edges of the bloodstained fabric, which felt sticky and disgusting. Looking away, he pulled it off.

When he turned back, he had to stifle a scream.

Long, diagonal wounds from re-opened scars criss-crossed di Angelo's back. And they weren't just any wounds either - the neat, almost uniform lines suggested he'd been viciously whipped - and very recently, too. But… who would even _do_ such a thing? The mystery surrounding the transfer student had only thickened, leaving Harry with even more questions than before.

Madame Pomfrey had appeared at his side, gasping in alarm. "Oh, my…" She looked down at him. "What happened?"

Harry bit his lip, trying to figure how how to explain it.

"Well, we were going to do lines in detention with Professor Umbridge - only she gave us these special quills to do them - and Nico touched one of them, and began screaming and bleeding. Other than that, I've got no idea."

Madame Pomfrey frowned. "Thank you, Harry. I've got an idea of what might have happened… but Umbridge couldn't possibly - well, actually I can't be sure. Hurry back to detention now, but please do me a favor and drop in afterwards - I'll need to take a look at your hands."

_What?_ Harry frowned at her strange request, but the woman had already left to gather some healing potions.

He realized in horror what she'd meant, minutes later, as the words " _I must not tell lies"_ carved themselves into his skin.

* * *

_Nico got up and looked around. In his dream, he was standing in his father's throne room. But Hades wasn't there, his black obsidian throne vacant._

_Persephone lounged on the second throne. She was wearing a simple white dress that had once been a vibrant green, with a simple crown of dandelions. She would have been rather pretty, had she not been glaring murderously at him._

_Nico decided to play it safe this time._

_Dropping to one knee, he muttered, "So what did I do this time, my lady?"_

_"What did you do?! You attacked my bowtruckles with an evil spirit! Useless, no good, stupid idiot…" Persephone began to rant out all of his flaws, while eating yet another pomegranate. Seriously, there were better ways to deal with stress..._

_But wait… evil spirit? So his suspicions had been correct. How -_

_"So now, you are cursed to kill every plant you touch! Except grass of course, that would be ridiculous… grass is very nice, but I never liked it much - too itchy… Wait! I had a point in this! Where was I? Oh, yes. Any plant tainted by your touch would be glad to die! Hah! Let's see you try to get through your quest now - you've got Herbology tomorrow. Hahaha..." She disappeared in a flash of muted green light, only to be replaced by a dark shadow._

_It slowly morphed into a frazzled looking Hades._

_Still on one knee, Nico looked up at him quizzically._

_"She always gets like this on the first few weeks back in the Underworld. All hysterical and insane…" He frowned at Nico. "What did you do to make her start up again?"_

_He bit his lip. "Well… I may have accidentally attacked her creations with a stick that contains an evil spirit…"_

_Hades sighed. "Oh yes, Hecate's little project. That would do it. I don't approve of it… but Hecate is the only one in direct contact with the Fates at the moment - why, I don't know, but no one else can find them. So anything she says about a quest must be followed - and she swore on the River Styx that you need him…"_

_"Who is 'him'?"_

_"I can't tell you, but you'll figure it out eventually. Now, wake."_

Nico woke up in a madhouse.

He was lying on his stomach on a tiny cot in Professor Dumbledore's office, but that wasn't the strangest thing about his situation; no, it was definitely the screaming Hazel.

His sister was standing in a crowd of pompously important Ministry officials, angrily calling all of them every single curse word since Chaos's birth.

"YOU (Censored)! WHAT IN (Censored) WAS THAT THING? DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH HE'S BEEN THROUGH ALREADY? HOW COULD YOU TRY TO TORTURE HIM? ALL OF YOU ARE (Very, very censored), SO WAKE HIM UP BEFORE I (Censored due to graphic violence) YOU!"

A pudgy little man in purple robes tried to calm her down. "Now, now…"

"DON'T YOU DARE TRY TO 'NOW, NOW' ME! WAKE HIM UP, YOU (Censored) IDIOT!"

Nico chuckled, something that he hadn't done in a long time. "Whoa. Calm down, Haze, I'm up."

She turned, and seeing him, rushed over; crushing him in a bone-breaking hug.

"Oh, Nico! Thank the gods that you're okay!"

"Y-yeah." He patted her back awkwardly, completely unsure of what to do in such an emotional situation. "I-I'm fine. What happened?"

Her eyes steeled with anger, but she whispered so as not to be overheard. "That stupid Professor tried to make you do lines with a blood quill - just like the blood pens used in the Fields of Punishment to do Dad's paperwork."

Nico's eyes widened. _Oh…_

"And obviously, those things are driven by pushing in misery and sucking out life force, so you had a severe allergic reaction to it, as you've got so much misery and so little life force (which we need to fix, by the way) - and it almost killed you, and -" She stopped, a single tear rolling down her coffee colored cheek. "I thought I'd lost you, Nico."

Then she turned, and continued to chew out the Ministry.

Nico bit his lip. _Wow…_ No wonder Hecate had taken a liking to Hazel.

That girl was just amazing.

* * *

Hazel left through a new Roman portal invention a few hours later - which the legionnaire responsible was unknown... But all of the demigods had apparently taken to calling it the "IM portal thingy" as it was largely based off of that Greek method of communication.

Nico, having never seen the portal in action, watched in absolute horror as her sister disappeared in a flurry of rainbows and unicorns.

He hoped he would never have to use it; shadow-travel was fine, thank you very much.

Unfortunately, he didn't have much time to think this subject, because - despite his sister's _extremely_ passionate protests - it was time for his second detention with Umbridge.

Sighing, he made his way down the third floor hallway and entered the Tartarus substitute.

Harry was already there, writing lines in his own blood. He looked up as Nico entered, eyes widening. The boy was obviously wondering about Nico's fate in this detention - which was going to be very unfortunate indeed.

Professor Umbridge smiled sweetly upon seeing him.

"Why, hello, Mr. Di Angelo - oh no, you'll not be serving detention in my office today, I don't want you ruining my carpet again - follow this way, please. Harry, keep writing. I'll know if you stop, so don't even think about it."

Umbridge left the room, Nico following closely behind. She led him through random twisting corridors and quite a few secret passageways - descending lower and lower until they were in a part of the dungeons he had never seen before. He foolishly followed her into the small chamber at the end of the hallway.

Professor Umbridge locked the door.

Suddenly, Nico found himself magicked into a straightjacket and tied to a chair.

_"Crucio."_

**A/N: Sorry guys. I just couldn't help myself. I _really, really_ love to hate Umbridge.**

**Nico: You're not the one suffering because of it!**

***Hazel appears, glaring***

**Me: Holy (censored)! *runs away as fast as I can***


	7. Miraculous Savior

**Disclaimer: Don't own. Am too tired to cry.**

**Nico: Oh,** **_you're_ ** **tired? I know what you're going to do to me this chapter, and I -**

***Hecate glares, and rebuilds fourth wall.***

**A/N: I'm introducing a new goddess in this chapter (she was not my idea, SarahRenee from Booksie created her). Hate her as much as you want. It's inevitable that you will.**

**Also this chapter is going to be pretty dark with little/no humor. Not my usual writing style - but it'll get better.**

Waves of pain crashed through his body. Nico felt like he was being stabbed, burned, and broken at the same time. He struggled, trying to shadow travel away, but it hurt too much to concentrate. The teen angrily bit his lip, willing himself not to scream in front of the horrible woman keeping him captive.

But he'd already been under the Cruciatus for half an hour.

A cry erupted from his lips, only earning Nico a sickly smile from Umbridge.

Finally, Umbridge released him from the spell, though still keeping him in the restraints. Nico lurched forward and gasped, opening his mouth to spout derogatory comments at the filthy pink creature in front of him. But Umbridge held a stubby finger to his lips.

"Now, now, be quiet. You've got a visitor."

The lock on the door clicked open. A dark figure coated in shadows glided in with a tinkling laugh.

"Oh, let the boy speak. It'll be the last time he does so freely, after all. Now, Dolores, would you be so kind to leave me and my lovely brother alone? We need to have a _chat._ "

Umbridge smiled sweetly. "Of course." She left, with a new skip to her step. Apparently, the woman got a huge rush from torturing people.

Nico, regaining his breath, tried to shadow travel away, only to find himself blocked by an invisible force in the darkness. The woman in front of him laughed again.

"You cannot use the shadows, my brother. At least, not in my presence." The thick waves of darkness that wrapped around her dissipated. Nico sucked in a breath.

In front of him stood a goddess - one who might once have been beautiful, but was now horribly disfigured. Burned and shriveled skin covered her arms. She wore a mask that radiated intimidation and fear. Dark, midnight black wings sprouted from her shoulder blades. Her right hand was was the most terrifying of all; it was made of pure celestial bronze, with sharp claws glinting wickedly in the darkness.

This was the goddess Mesperyian; goddess torture and punishment - daughter of Persephone and Hades.

His half sister.

"Mesperyian. What... what are you - "

"Doing here?" Mesperyian raised an eyebrow. Her mask copied her movement. "Why, just having a little fun, of course. Maybe join up with Riddle... there are so many possibilities for pain in the Wizarding World, you know. But most of all, _you're_ here. I get to hurt _you._ "

"Uh, huh." Nico glared up at her, trying to hide his fear. "And how will you keep me from telling dad? He's the one who sent me here in the first place to -"

"Yes, yes, to _kill_ Tom Riddle. I know. So what?" She smiled sadistically. "I've got the perfect accessory to stop that."

There was a _click,_ and Nico felt a cool metal band slide around his neck.

A collar.

His eyes widened. "No."

"Oh, yes." The goddess laughed and flicked her fingers. Suddenly, the metal contracted and began to burn. Nico screamed. "This is the perfect way to keep your silence. But also -"

She released him and waved her hand. A glimmering image showed Hazel in a spherical cage made of thorns, trying to punch her way out of it. "I intercepted this lovely girl while she was traveling through one of my servants' inventions. Recognize her?"

"Hazel!" Nico turned to the goddess. His resolve crumbled. "No, please. I'll do whatever you want, let her go!"

"Of course not. She's my only bargaining chip." Mesperyian leaned down, grinning cruelly. "For this will make you come down here every day for the rest of the year to be tortured by my dear friend Umbridge. And if I visit, and request something of you, you will do it. And you _will_ do whatever I want - or both you _and_ your sister will pay. Am I clear?"

Nico hung his head in defeat. He'd failed again. Not only to his father and Hecate, but also to the only (real) sister of his that was left. "Clear."

"Good."

And she threw him into the shadows.

* * *

Nico dropped from the darkness in front of a stone dungeon wall.

_"Pureblood."_ He muttered. The stone walls slid open, bathing him in the soft green light of the Slytherin common room.

Draco Malfoy looked up from one of the green couches as he entered. "Oh, hello di Angelo. What happened to you?"

Nico bit his lip, wanting badly to tell someone - anyone what had happened, but he stopped himself. "Detention."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "That bad, eh?"

He nodded. "What're _you_ doing up so late?"

Draco grimaced. "Studying. If that mudblood, Granger, beats me again on a test, Father will definitely explode." He shuddered. "Last summer..."

Nico nodded in sympathy. He'd had his own share of high expectations - but all of which he'd already fallen short of. Unlike Draco, there was no hope for him now. Groaning, he dropped down on the couch next to the older boy.

Draco looked at him in surprise. "You're not going to go hide in some dark corner again?"

Nico turned and glared at him.

"Whoa, fine. Merlin, I was just joking. Just - is everything alright with you? You simply seem a little off tonight." Draco seemed genuinely concerned. Nico had never seen this side of him before.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired." He sighed, tugging at his collar. "Umbridge is just..."

He cut off, wincing as a slight flare of heat burned his fingers and neck. _Crap..._

Draco's eyes widen as he saw this happen. He was a lot smarter than people gave him credit for, and he _knew_ something was up with Nico's new neck thingy. It was definitely not a fashion statement, by any chance.

"What's that?" He asked innocently.

"Nothing... just - a gift."

"A... gift." He cocked an eyebrow at di Angelo. "You don't sound sure."

"Yes. It's a gift... from my sister."

Draco started. Well, that was surprising. "You have a sister?"

"A few... I'm only really close to my younger sister, but my older one dropped in for a... surprise visit."

That was definitely a lie. What part of it was, though, Draco couldn't tell.

Like Harry, he'd only acquired more questions than answers about this dark haired Slytherin.

* * *

_The next few weeks passed in a blur. Nico barely made it through all six periods of classes every day. And at night... there was only pain. Endless pain. Nico wasn't sure he would survive this quest - and he wasn't even sure he wanted to._

_He'd blocked the Iris Messages from all of his friends in the demigod camps, not wanting them to notice his collar like Draco had. He'd begun to wear a black scarf at all times, hiding the cursed metal - no matter the weather. He'd excluded himself from almost any human or godly contact. The son of Hades was truly at his lowest, and he knew he'd never get another chance to climb back up again._

_He had been broken._

_Shattered._

On the other side of the world, one William Solace turned in his sleep. Somehow, he knew the nightmare he was having was real.

Blue eyes opened, filling with anger and fear.

It was time to ask Hades for a favor.

* * *

Harry had lost his temper in class again, earning him another week of detentions with (now also Hogwarts High Inquisitor) Professor Umbridge. So he had been forced back in the pink, bloodstained office, carving _"I must not tell lies"_ over and over into his hand. (Too ashamed, he never had get back to Madame Pomfrey on that.)

Harry'd wanted to scream.

But then slowly, over the course of the week, Harry began noticing something strange - Umbridge was strangely happy. Not just the facade of sweetness she put on during classes - she was truly _happy,_ he could tell from every time she got back from wherever she went every evening. (And also, Umbridge was lying about knowing whether or not he'd stopped writing. He'd _always_ stopped writing as soon as she'd left, and the toad was always oblivious.)

It was almost as if she had something better, more sadistic to do.

He decided to figure out what it was.

When Umbridge left the office again on Friday, Harry waited a few minutes before putting down the Blood Quill and getting up. He reached into his bag and pulled out a few forged pages of _"I must not tell lies"_ that Hermione had written for him in some fake blood - which she'd gotten from a Muggle store. (Why she even _had_ something like that, he didn't know.)

Harry placed those on his desk, and opened Umbridge's door, following her down the hallway...

When he reached the chamber at the end of the dungeon corridor, Harry had to stifle a gasp of surprise as he looked through the grimy window on the wooden door. Nico di Angelo was already there, shaking - the fear around him was thick, almost tangible. There was also a metal ring around his neck.

_It's a collar,_ Harry realized, as Umbridge twitched her wand, and Nico fell down screaming. _That sick, vile -_

But that was nothing compared to what happened next.

Umbridge whispered something to the boy, and Nico, holding his stomach, stumbled over to a chair and collapsed into it. Restraints suddenly sprang up and effectively immobilized him.

And then the fat, disgusting woman did the unspeakable.

_"Crucio."_

Nico twitched for a moment, then began to scream. His cries filled Harry's ears and sickened him to his core. He regretted ever wondering if the boy was a Death Eater (which he, Hermione, and Ron _had_ done, on many occasions), feeling nothing but shock and horror at how di Angelo was being treated now.

Harry turned to leave the hallway, intending to find Dumbledore, when he bumped into a blonde-haired boy in muggle clothes. A golden arrow was immediately pointed at his face.

"Where - is - Nico - di - Angelo?"

* * *

Will hated shadow travel.

But he had no choice but to go with Lord Hades's plan, as it was the only form of travel the god was really capable of using - on mortals, anyway. Will supposed he was lucky enough he'd even survived when he'd stormed the Hades cabin, demanding audience with the god... but still. Shadows - ugh.

Fortunately, Hades was one of the gods who did care about his demigod children. And although he could not directly interfere with the wizarding world, he was more than happy to send in another puny demigod to help them.

So, Will had been given a few supplies and weapons; then he had been unceremoniously dumped into a shadow, which transported him into Nico's current location.

Needless to say, he was pretty concerned when he'd ended up in a dungeon corridor filled with screams.

Will got up, forcing himself to head towards the sound. Suddenly, a skinny boy with messy black hair and green eyes like Percy Jackson slammed into him - but Will wasn't going to take any chances, no matter how innocent the guy seemed. In a flash, he had notched an arrow and was pointing it at him.

"Where - is - Nico - di - Angelo?"

Percy *extra small* just stared at him in shock. "W-what do you want with him?"

"What does it look like? I need to save him from... whatever he needs saving from!" Will _definitely_ sounded like a hero. "Where is he?"

Percy XS's eyes narrowed, but he seemed to decide to trust Will for time being. He pointed down the hallway. "Down there, in that room. But the door is locked!"

Will bit his lip. "Leave that to me. Go get help - whatever help you can!" Normally, he wouldn't ask mortals to risk their lives... but this was _Nico di Angelo._ He couldn't understand it, but something about that demigod made Will want to burn down the world to save him.

And Will was usually a _non-violence_ kind of guy.

Percy XS ran off. Will took a deep breath, and pointed his arrow at the door knob. He was only an average shot compared to his siblings (many of whom could win an international archery championship in their free time); and even that had only come from years of practice. _Here goes nothing._

He prayed to his father and all the other gods he would save Nico in time.

_Thwoomp!_ The arrow flew through the lock, cutting through it like butter.

There was another scream this time - but it was a scream of shock, and not pain. Will ran into the room, prepared to shoot, but there were no monsters or gods as he'd expected.

Instead, a fat little toadlike woman dressed in pink was sprawled across the ground, whimpering, with Will's arrow sticking out of her behind. His healer instincts screamed for him to help, but he stopped himself, scanning the room until he saw him.

Nico di Angelo was tied to a chair, eyes shut and barely breathing; but still alive.

Will scrambled over the pink woman and rushed over, kneeling before the smaller boy. His heart nearly broke upon seeing the boy so vulnerable... and weak.

"You idiot, di Angelo!" He whispered, trying to keep his voice from cracking. "Oh, what've you gotten into?"

To his surprise, the son of Hades's eyes fluttered open. He stared into Will's clear blue ones.

"Solace," he breathed, "What - what're you... How - WATCH OUT!" Nico's face filled with alarm. Will ducked, just as a knife made of pure shadow flew over his head - and headed straight towards Nico.

Mesperyian glided into the room, hissing in fury. "Son of Apollo - you've almost ruined it! A few more minutes, and I would've cracked him - Nico was almost completed! Just a little more pain..."

She lunged for her brother with her metal claw, but Will stopped her with her own knife - the one that Nico had caught between his teeth and spat out into his hand.

"I don't know who you are, but you're _not_ hurting Nico anymore!"

"Oh, really?" The goddess laughed. She flicked her other hand's wrist.

Immediately, Nico screamed and Will realized with horror that he was wearing a metal collar - which was smoking and glowing red with heat. He growled ferally, swinging his fist at Mesperyian and missing. Will didn't think he ever been this angry in his life.

"YOU (Censored)!"

Mesperyian raised an eyebrow. "And what are you going to do about it? One more second and Nico's done..."

"I'll - I'll - "

"The boy cannot do anything, but I can." A thick velvety voice sounded from the doorway. Suddenly, an arrow _zinged,_ slicing through the air and finding a home in Mesperyian's back. She fell to the floor, motionless. Nico stopped screaming.

Eros stood in the doorway, white wings folded neatly behind him. He twitched his hand, and Nico's collar dissolved. There was now only a nasty red circle in its place.

"She'll be back." He nodded at Mesperyian, who was slowly disappearing away into the shadows. "You'll find Hazel - whom Mesperyian captured - in the Great Hall, where I dropped her off. Send her back to Camp Jupiter, but _you_ should stay with Nico in Hogwarts. He needs you."

_He... does?_ Will felt a warm feeling in his chest.

Eros twitched his hand again. The pink lady (Will had almost forgotten about her) also disappeared. "I sent _her_ to the infirmary. Unfortunately, too - the Fates are rather annoying sometimes, as I'm not allowed to kill the disgusting mortal."

He left in a flash of light.

"Was that the same guy who publicly flogged me in front of the entire Camp a few weeks ago?" Nico managed to croak.

**A/N: So the last part was more positive than I'd thought...**

**And yes! Will is joining Nico in Hogwarts! What do you think?**

***Also if any of you think Umbridge was being _too_ sadistic and OOC from the books, it was because Mesperyian was helping her - and consequently inflaming her desire to hurt people.**


	8. Percy XS's DA

**Disclaimer: Do we really have to do this again? I don't own anything, period.**

**A/N: So, this will be a shorter chapter b/c I am sort of out of ideas. Oh, well... Enjoy the last of my quick updates, because after Thanksgiving break, I'll only be updating once a week.**

_Nico fell onto the dark Tartarus sand. The acid air choked him as he raised his sword one last time, slicing through another gryphon. But it was too late. He could hear laughter behind him as the giant twins, Otis and Ephialtes, grabbed him and stuffed him in their bronze jar._

" _Goodbye, little demigod." Tartarus whispered in his ears. "Have fun dying."_

_Then he was screaming, falling…_

Nico sat straight up in an infirmary bed, breathing heavily. _Where am I?_ For a brief moment, he'd forgotten where he was.

Then it all came crashing back to him.

Mesperyian's torture. Will's miraculous arrival. And Eros…

He shook his head in confusion. Eros had saved him and Hazel. But… why? Hadn't the god whipped him, then banished him from all areas of the world except the Underworld and the demigod camps a few weeks ago? (By the way - Eros was the one who'd framed him for all of those mortal crimes.) So what was he doing now?

"Nico!" Will had entered the room. "You're up!"

Madame Pomfrey glared at him for disturbing her patients.

"Sorry, sorry." Will knelt beside him. "You okay?"

"Y-yeah. Thanks to you." Nico gave him a thin smile. "What happened after I blacked out?"

Will looked shocked. "Is _Nico di Angelo_ smiling?"

Nico's face morphed into a glare. "Solace."

"Yeah, fine." Will chuckled, seemingly immune to his death glare. "Well, I found Hazel, and then Hades sent her back to Camp Jupiter, so she's safe now." He smiled at Nico's relieved look, and continued.

"Anyway, Hecate showed up and did a little Mist magic, so everyone thinks I've been here since the beginning with you. The nasty Umbridge lady has forgotten about Mesperyian and torturing you." His face suddenly twisted into a sneer, which looked wrong on him. "In my opinion, she should have been dragged down to Tartarus, but…" Will sighed. "Fates will be Fates. Anyway, Percy Extra Small has been memory wiped too -"

Nico raised an eyebrow. "Percy Extra Small? Wait… do you mean Harry?"

"If that's his name, then yeah."

" _Harry_ saw me getting tortured? How?"

"I dunno. But Hecate wiped his memory of what happened, so we're good." Will shrugged. "Anyway, Per - Harry is starting up a defense club against Umbridge and the Ministry. First meeting's today, in some town called Hogsmeade. Wanna come?"

"Wait - how did you know Harry's plans? And don't trips to Hogsmeade need parent permission?" Nico looked up at Will inquisitively.

"Oh, right. I forgot to tell you - I was sorted into Gryffindor, according to the Mist. So Hermione and Ron invited me to come. And as for parent permission…" He shoved a few pieces of paper under Nico's nose. "Your father sent these - they're the signed permission forms. Also a letter inviting you and me to stay with him for Christmas…" Will looked nervous. "Hades isn't going to feed me to Cerberus, is he?"

Nico was surprised at this news, but he rolled his eyes. "He won't unless you mess with the zombie patrol."

Will only looked even more worried at this.

* * *

Harry looked around the Hog's Head. It was not at all like the Three Broomsticks, whose large bar gave an impression of gleaming warmth and cleanliness. The Hog's Head bar comprised one small, dingy, and very dirty room that smelled strongly of something that might have been goats. The bay windows were so encrusted with grime that very little daylight could permeate the room, which was lit instead with the stubs of candles sitting on rough wooden tables. The floor seemed at first glance to be earthy, though as Harry stepped onto it he realized that there was stone beneath what seemed to be the accumulated filth of centuries.

He bought a few butterbeers with Ron and Hermione, and waited for the people they'd invited to arrive.

The door of the pub soon opened again. A thick band of dusty sunlight split the room in two for a moment and then vanished, blocked by the incoming rush of a crowd of people.

First came Neville with Dean and Lavender, who were closely followed by Parvati and Padma Patil with (Harry's stomach did a back flip) Cho and one of her usually giggling friends, then (on her own and looking so dreamy that she might have walked in by accident) Luna Lovegood; then Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet, and Angelina Johnson, Colin and Dennis Creevey, Ernie Macmillan, Justin FinchFletchley, Hannah Abbott, and a Hufflepuff girl with a long plait down her back whose name Harry did not know; three Ravenclaw boys he was pretty sure were called Anthony Goldstein, Michael Corner, and Terry Boot; Ginny, followed by a tall skinny blond boy with an upturned nose whom Harry recognized vaguely as being a member of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, and Fred and George Weasley with their friend Lee Jordan, all three of whom were carrying large paper bags crammed with Zonko's merchandise. Will Solace brought up the rear, bright orange muggle clothes standing out in the sea of underage wizards.

Beside him walked Nico di Angelo, calmly eating an apple.

Harry turned to Hermione. "What is _he_ doing here? He's a Slytherin! And - like you said - probably a Death Eater too…"

Hermione shrugged, an equally shocked expression on her face. "I only invited Solace… maybe he decided to bring along his friend? Besides, they're transfer students - they've got nothing to do with Umbridge or the Ministry, so they should be fine. Also -"

She leaned forward, whispering in his ear. "I put a Compulsory Silence charm on the sign-up sheet, so no one - especially if they are Death Eaters - will be able to spill our secret."

As everyone settled down, Hermione stood up.

"Er," she said, her voice slightly higher than usual out of nerves. "Well - er - hi." The group focused its attention on her, though eyes darted regularly to Harry.

"Well… erm… well, you know why you're here. Erm... well, Harry here had the idea - I mean" - Harry had thrown her a sharp look - "I had the idea - that it might be good if people who wanted to study Defense Against the Dark Arts - and I mean, really study it, you know, not the rubbish that Umbridge is doing with us" - (Hermione's voice became suddenly much stronger and more confident) - "because nobody could call that Defense Against the Dark Arts" - "Hear, hear," said Will Solace and Hermione looked heartened - "well, I thought it would be good if we, well, took matters into our own hands."

She paused, looked sideways at Harry, and went on, "And by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just theory but the real spells -"

"You want to pass your Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. too though, I bet?" said Michael Corner.

"Of course I do," said Hermione at once. "But I want more than that, I want to be properly trained in Defense because… because..." She took a great breath and finished, "Because Lord Voldemort's back."

The reaction was immediate and predictable. Cho's friend shrieked and slopped butterbeer down herself, Terry Boot gave a kind of involuntary twitch, Padma Patil shuddered, and Neville gave an odd yelp that he managed to turn into a cough. Nico di Angelo, however, only let out a short laugh.

" _Vol de mort."_ He muttered. "All of you are afraid of a guy with a name that means 'Flight of Death', in French?"

Harry turned toward him in surprise. "And who are you to judge what we should be afraid of? You've never met Voldemort. I've seen him - I've fought him -" He ignored the shout of _That's rubbish!_ in the background. "I know what it's like."

"Perhaps." Nico sighed, taking another bite of his apple. "But Voldemort is only mortal, in the end. There are others -" He shuddered, "That _I've_ met, that _I've_ been tortured by - that aren't. Trust me, Voldemort is a lot less scary compared to them."

Harry frowned at him, confused by Nico's words. "Oh, really?"

"Yes." Nico looked at him. "Because of them, I -" He finished his apple and took out a knife. People quickly scrambled away from him. "Am required to know how to do -" He threw the apple core and the knife at the same time. "This." The knife sliced straight into the middle of the apple core, pinning it to Harry's chair - a few inches away from his head.

"Showoff." Will muttered.

Ron gaped at the Slytherin. "What'd you attack Harry for? Git." He added.

Nico frowned. "I didn't attack Harry. If I wanted the knife to hit him - well, believe me, it would've."

Will nodded. "Yes. You are just an annoying showoff."

Nico glared at him.

"The _point_ is," Hermione said loudly - though still looking a bit shaken by Nico's display, "V-Voldemort is back, and we need to be prepared."

"Where's the proof You-Know-Who's back?" said the blond Hufflepuff player in a rather aggressive voice.

"Well, Dumbledore believes it -" Hermione began.

"You mean, Dumbledore believes _him_ ," said the blond boy, nodding at Harry.

"Who are you?" said Ron rather rudely.

"Zacharias Smith," said the boy, "and I think we've got the right to know exactly what makes him say You-Know-Who's back."

"Look," said Hermione, intervening swiftly, "that's really not what this meeting was supposed to be about -"

"It's okay, Hermione," said Harry.

It had just dawned upon him why there were so many people there. He felt that Hermione should have seen this coming. Some of these people - maybe even most of them - had turned up in the hope of hearing Harry's story firsthand. Except for the transfer students… Harry hadn't a clue why _they_ were here.

"What makes me say You-Know-Who's back?" he asked, looking Zacharias straight in the face. "I saw him. But Dumbledore told the whole school what happened last year, and if you didn't believe him, you don't believe me, and I'm not wasting an afternoon trying to convince anyone."

Zacharias said dismissively, "All Dumbledore told us last year was that Cedric Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought Diggory's body back to Hogwarts. He didn't give us details, he didn't tell us exactly how Diggory got murdered, I think we'd all like to know -"

"If you've come to hear exactly what it looks like when Voldemort murders someone I can't help you," Harry said. His temper, always so close to the surface these days, was rising again. He did not take his eyes from Zacharias Smith's aggressive face, determined not to look at Cho. "I don't want to talk about Cedric Diggory, all right? So if that's what you're here for, you might as well clear out."

"Who was Cedric Diggory?" Nico had spoken up again. "Why was he killed?"

Hermione frowned at him. "Cedric Diggory was killed by Voldemort during the Triwizard Tournament last year, when he and Harry were transported to him by Portkey - which was the Triwizard Cup."

Nico nodded, satisfied. The other students spoke among themselves. People began asking Harry of his past adventures - the Sorcerer's Stone, the basilisk, and the dementors. He was uncomfortable with the attention, but Hermione smiled encouragingly.

"You're doing well with them." She whispered.

Luna Lovegood spoke up. "But what about the Ministry? Fudge has got a great big army of heliopaths."

"What?" said Harry, completely thrown by this unexpected piece of information.

"Yes, he's got an army of heliopaths," said Luna solemnly.

"No, he hasn't," snapped Hermione.

"Yes, he has," said Luna.

"What are heliopaths?" asked Neville, looking blank.

"They're spirits of fire," said Luna, her protuberant eyes widening so that she looked madder than ever. "Great tall flaming creatures that gallop across the ground burning everything in front of -"

Nico cocked an eyebrow at Will. He spoke in a strange language that Harry could not identify.

"What _has your father been up to?"_

Will looked extremely guilty.

" _Uh… Apollo_ may _have made a deal with Notus a while back that didn't turn out so well…"_

Nico groaned.

Hermione sighed, shaking her head. " _Anyway,_ all of you can sign up here. She pulled out a sheet from her bag. But if you sign, you're have to agree not to tell Umbridge - or anybody else - what we're up to."

To Harry's surprise, everyone signed it - even Nico, who stared at the paper suspiciously before scribbling his name messily. He sighed in relief. Now, none of the people here would be able to tell Umbridge of their plans.

Little did any of them realize that one of the group had left out a letter in their own name -

_Cho Chng_

**A/N: Oooooh, something's up with Cho (for those of you who have read Harry Potter, you already know what it is, but oh well.)**

**Also - yes, I am doing Solangelo. But it's going to be slow building, because... well, actually because I just haven't quite figured out to do a fluffy scene. Yes, that is a stupid reason, but fluffy is the one thing I _can't_ write. So... sorry. Solangelo will wait.**

***Jason shoots lightning at me.***


	9. Beware Greeks Bearing Gifts

**Disclaimer: I don't own this. Happy Rowling/Riordan?**

**A/N: Yes, this is the last update that will be so fast. And from now on, I am updating every Saturday/Sunday (it will depend), until winter break. I know it's sad. But at least I'm not in highschool yet.**

**Also, to those asking - yes, it was Cho's friend who ratted out to Umbridge in the books, but...**

**Mesperyian: I had other plans. *smiles evilly***

* * *

_A few days prior to the meeting in Hog's Head…_

Violet light flashed inside a cave, deep in the Underworld. A terrifying monster had risen from the pit, dark wings and one hand of sharp claws flashing.

Mesperyian was back.

* * *

Nico stared at the notice in the Great Hall in disbelief.

**The High Inquisitor of Hogwarts**

**All Student Organizations, Societies, Teams, Groups, and Clubs are henceforth disbanded.**

**An Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students.**

**Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge).**

**No Student Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor.**

**Any student found to have formed, or to belong to, an Organization, Society, Team, Group, or Club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled.**

_The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-four._

Signed:

_Dolores Jane Umbridge_

**HIGH INQUISITOR**

The Golden Trio came up behind him. Ron was yelling.

"You did this! Di Angelo ratted us out to Umbridge!"

Hermione frowned. "He couldn't have - if he did, he'd be in the infirmary right now!"

"I would?" Nico looked at her in mild interest.

"Well - yes, er - I may have cursed the sign-up sheet, sorry, but -"

"Smart of you." He nodded. "But if no one in our group informed Umbridge of this, who did?"

None of them had any answer to that.

The rest of the students soon filed in for breakfast. A loud chatter came up as they all noticed the - well, notice.

"Look at that!"

"D'you reckon she knows?"

"What are we going to do?"

Nico slumped onto a seat at the Slytherin table. Just when things were going _right…_ He picked at his food, not wanting to eat. Suddenly, a piece of toast was stuffed into his mouth.

"Mmphg!"

Will stood over him, a smirk on his face. "Gotta eat, di Angelo. I'll get you on a healthier diet if it's the last thing I do."

"Better not be," muttered Nico, "'Cause that'd be a rather sad life."

Will just rolled his eyes and pushed Nico over, sitting down next to him; oblivious to the glares of the Slytherin house.

"So," he said, "What's the deal with Umbridge? How'd she figure it out?"

"Dunno. But it couldn't have been one of our group; Hermione cursed the sign up sheet. None of us can spill without something horrible happening."

" _What?"_ Will looked shocked.

"Get used to it, Solace. It's called magic." Nico smirked at the look on his face. Will grunted.

"Hmph. Come on, Sunshine - it's time for History of Magic. And no, you're not going to skip that class, Ghost King or not - not on _my_ watch."

"Don't call me that!"

Will dragged him off to a death by boredom.

* * *

Professor Binns was floating an inch or so above his chair as usual, preparing to continue his monotonous drone on giant wars. Nico was not about to listen - he'd had enough of giant wars for a lifetime, thank you very much.

Suddenly, there was a loud peck on the window. Nico looked up, and saw Harry's owl - Hedwig - perched on the narrow window ledge outside, gazing through the thick glass at them.

There was a letter tied to her leg.

Many of the other students had seen her too, pointing her out to each other.

"Oh, I've always loved that owl, she's so beautiful," Nico heard Lavender sigh to Parvati.

_Seriously?_ He thought, _A random bird shows up in the middle of class and_ that's _the only thing you're thinking of?_

He glanced around at Professor Binns who continued to read his notes, serenely unaware that the class's attention was even less focused upon him than usual. Harry, who was sitting across from him, crouched down and hurried along the row to the window, where he slid the catch and opened it very slowly.

"She's hurt!" Will whispered behind him. "I can feel it."

Will followed Harry to the window. He scooped up the snowy owl and ran back to his seat, much to the latter's protests. Professor Binns looked up - about to ask what the commotion was all about - when Nico shot him a harsh glare, daring him the say something. The ghost shut up.

Nico turned, looking at the bird in Will's lap. Hedwig's feathers were oddly ruffled; some were bent the wrong way, and she was holding one of her wings at an odd angle. The owl struggled to get out of Will's grip, back to Harry.

Will, however, held her firmly - he was used to patients like this, human or animal. He placed his other hand's fingers lightly on her wing and hummed gently. The wing began to glow, magically mending itself. Whispers traveled around the classroom, people pointing and staring at Will - who only calmly handed Hedwig back to the Golden Trio after he was done.

Nico groaned at this. He now seriously doubted the the wisdom of letting the son of Apollo stay at Hogwarts; that demigod just couldn't understand the meaning of undercover.

He said as much to Will when he got back to his seat.

"Oops." Was the only answer.

* * *

After an… _interesting_ class of potions - Umbridge vs. Professor Snape - Nico headed to his very first Divination class. He'd skipped all of the other ones… but Will was here now, and Will could be very stubborn.

So Nico took his seat in the hot, over-perfumed atmosphere of the Divination classroom, feeling extremely angry at all of the Fates. The professor - Tree-lawn, wasn't it? - was handing out copies of some book called _The Dream Oracle._ He scowled at it.

"I think I like Rachel better. The spirit of Delphi might be strange and completely confusing, but at least it's not a fraud."

Will rolled his eyes. "Whatever di Angelo. _I_ think this book is kinda cool."

Well, he did… until Apollo's head popped out of it.

"Hi, son!"

Will yelped, and dropped the book on the ground - under the table - so none of the wizards would see. "What the _Hades_ are you doing?"

Apollo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. It's boring in Zeus's jail cell, being punished because of that Octavian! Can't I check in on my favorite demigod son? Oh - hi, Nico! Long time, no see. Why do you look so much more... creepy? Wait - I feel a haiku coming on -"

Nico glared at the god. "Don't even start. Why are you here?"

Apollo frowned at him. "You're no fun. Fine, I'm here to warn you - a certain torture goddess has reawakened. So watch out! Oh, and also - why is half of Tom Riddle's soul in your wand? Just wondering!"

With that, he disappeared.

Nico took out his the black poplar stick, staring at it. " _What?!"_

* * *

_Meanwhile…_

Hades sighed at his angry wife. who was pacing the floor in front of him screaming every curse word in the history of curse words.

"WHY DID YOU INVITE BOTH OF THOSE (Censored) HERE FOR CHRISTMAS? ISN'T THAT (Censored) NICO BOY BAD ENOUGH? (Censored) YOU! (Censored) EVERYTHING! I AM GOING TO (Censored due to graphic violence worthy of Hazel) THEM!" Persephone screeched.

Hades groaned, leaning back on his throne. "It wasn't my idea, okay? Eros suggested it - and I won't say no to him, because I don't want to fall in love with a poplar tree!"

Persephone huffed, and glared at him.

"And don't you dare hurt Nico - nor Will for that matter, because I do not want to hear another blasted Haiku from his idiot father. Understand?"

"Fine." She stormed off, poisonous flowers glittering in her wake.

Hades sighed, running his fingers through unkempt hair that looked so much like his son's.

Oh, Nico… _and_ Mesperyian. He wasn't even sure what to do about his children, now that they had turned on one another.

He did love Nico, of course, but Mesperyian had always been his favorite. No matter how cruel and sadistic, she _was_ still his firstborn daughter. But if she had sided with Riddle - and against Hades…

Then there was Eros. Hades had set off to find the stupid love god, initially intending to punish him for what he did to Nico - only to find that Eros, had in fact, saved Nico's life… from his own daughter.

Which only led him back to Mesperyian.

Hades finally left his castle, deciding to take his anger out on his subjects.

The screams from the Fields of Punishment were especially loud that night.

* * *

Will wasn't sure why everyone got so mad at him when he took Nico into the Gryffindor common room. They had, after all, left his possessed wand back in the dorms - wrapped in a shadow cage with a million curses and locks.

"You can't have him here, he's a _Slytherin._ "

"Get that slimy snake away from us!"

"What is _he_ doing in here?"

The Golden Trio stormed up to them.

"What'd you bring di Angelo here for?" Asked Harry. "He's a Slytherin!"

Nico cocked an eyebrow. "I _could_ be in Gryffindor, too - or did you not hear the Sorting hat at the beginning of the year?"

Hermione frowned. "We _also_ heard it scream like a banshee while on your head. So - what _are_ you doing here?"

Ron stared at her incredulously. "What do you think? He's a bloody Death Eater - now he's come to spy on Harry!"

Will choked with laughter. "Th-Thanatos Eater? _What?_ "

"Don't ask." Nico mumbled. "I don't know either. And I'm definitely not a follower of a guy who's name rhymes with 'moldy shorts'."

Will only laughed harder. The Golden Trio stared at the two of them as if they were aliens.

"Besides," Nico lowered his voice, "I've got a message for… what was his name? Something about being serious…"

Harry choked. "What?! How did you know Sirius -"

"Shh." Nico put a finger to his lips. "Here - I'll contact him for you. The Foo Network isn't safe."

"Floo Network." Hermione corrected automatically. "And how do you know it isn't safe?"

As if on cue, the fireplace in the middle of the Gryffindor common room flared green, and a hand had appeared amongst the flames, groping as though to catch hold of something; a stubby, short-fingered hand covered in ugly old-fashioned rings…

Umbridge's hand.

No one else had noticed, but the Golden Trio stared at it in horror.

"That," said Will, "Is why it isn't safe. Now come on - you got a private bathroom anywhere?"

"Well - there's the prefect bathroom -"

"No!" Harry glared at Hermione. "How can we trust them?"

"Well, we've got no choice, do we?" She frowned at the two transfers. "They already know too much... and if we _don't_ contact Sirius, he'll use the Floo and be caught by Umbridge! She's already intercepting your mail - that's how she found out we're meeting him tonight!"

"Then - wait!" Ron turned to Nico. "How did _you_ find out?"

Will rolled his eyes. "I took your owl. Think I wouldn't have taken a peek at your letter while I was at it?"

"Actually," Nico muttered, "No. That's more like something _I_ would do. Probably rubbing off on you, Solace."

Will looked horrified at this.

Hermione huffed. "Well, anyway - let's go. The prefect bathrooms are this way."

They headed out of the Gryffindor common room, and Hermione led them to a statue on the fifth floor.

" _Pine Fresh."_ She stated clearly.

The statue turned, huffed, and gestured for her to enter. "Don't know why four boys are trying to follow some girl into the bathroom…" He blocked their way after Hermione had gone in.

Nico choked. "Really?"

"Yeah!" Will glared at the statue. "I'm gay, for your information!"

Nico started in surprise. _He… was?_ For some reason, he felt strangely happy at that.

And then he did something that he'd thought he'd never do.

"So am I! And… uh, let us into the bathroom!"

Will, Harry, and Ron turned toward him.

" _What?"_ Ron stared in disbelief. "Solace - I can understand, but _you?_ "

Harry just gaped. "Wha -"

Will stared at him, then he grinned. "Yay!"

But Nico had stopped listening. He bit his lip and hunched his shoulders, scolding himself for being so stupid. Of _course_ the Gryffindors wouldn't accept him if he told them that! How could he have been so foolish as to think they would?

The shadows around him darkened. The statue squeaked, and hopped away in fright. Will frowned at him, concerned.

"Nico -"

But before the son of Apollo could say any more, Nico di Angelo had already stormed away into the bathrooms.

Sighing in worry, Will followed.

Hermione looked up as they entered. "What took you guys so long? Wait - what happened?"

"Nothing." Nico growled as he came in. "Just - make a rainbow."

She raised an eyebrow at his lie, but complied - turning on one of the jeweled taps surrounding the giant, pool-like tub. A jet of water shot out of it.

"Lumos," she muttered at her wand. A light shone out of it and created a rainbow through the water.

Nico threw a golden coin into the mist. Hermione noticed it was bloodstained - as if Nico had been gripping it so hard, he'd cut himself.

_What had even_ happened _?_

"O Fleecy, do me a solid," Nico spoke, calling the cloud spirit's direct number, (He'd learned it from Percy.) "Show me Sirius Black… uh, somewhere in London, England."

The rainbow shimmered. Suddenly, a man with a gaunt, sunken face, waxy skin, yellow teeth, and long, matted hair came into view.

"Sirius!" Harry cried.

The man jumped back in shock, paling. "Harry! Why - I thought I was contacting you!"

"Yeah… well, the Floo Network isn't safe. Nico and Will here helped us find you." Harry shrugged sheepishly. "I know we were supposed to keep it a secret, but they found out on their own, I swear -"

But Sirius had stopped listening. He stared at the transfer students in horror. "No…"

"Yes, Sirius Black." Nico raised an eyebrow at the guy. "Terminus told me about you… well, drachmas will be dropped off to wherever you are if you need to speak to us again. _You cannot escape your past, demigod._ " He spoke the last part in Latin, watching as the man's eyes widened to the size to saucers.

"Bye!" Sirius muttered quickly. "Good luck with your illegal club, Harry!"

He cut the connection.

Harry stared at him. "What was _that_ all about?"

**A/N: So... yes. Sorry, Nico - but it'll get better. There will be Solangelo in the end.**

**And Sirius is a demigod! (That took even _me_ by surprise.) What do you think?**

***Also, for those of you PMing me about this -**

**I "censor" all of my bad language for three reasons:**

**1\. It's funny.**

**2\. Actual language just makes a story sound... I don't know, _crude._ At least to me it does.**

**3\. I know my nine year old sister is secretly reading this.**


	10. Peace (Or Something Close to It)

**Disclaimer: I don't own this... why are the Fates so _cruel_?**

**A/N: So this is going to be a pretty long chapter - I've had a week to write it, after all...**

**But I'm still struggling with writer's block, so it may not necessarily be a good one. Oh, well.**

Sirius slashed his hands through the mist, beginning to hyperventilate. Of all things to come back and haunt him… He tried to calm down; tried to forget. But the memory still came crashing back:

_He sat on the edge of a catwalk in an abandoned warehouse. Andrew and Cendor sat on either side, all three pairs of legs dangling into the darkness._

_It was Sirius's first time on a quest. And at the moment, he was lucky to be alive._

_He had foolishly believed, along with the other two demigods, that the rogue venti they had found truly had turned "good", and wanted to help them; stupidly buying into the monsters' lies. The vaporous horses had carried them for a while, promising to drop them at their destination, when… boom. They'd fallen asleep and were dropped from the sky like stones during a Roman execution._

Luckily, Sirius and Andrew were able work the Mist into letting them float down softly, _or they would have been half-blood pancake. (Also, Sirius was a part time secret wizard, so…)_

" _Can't believe those stupid things tricked us - good thing you two are children of Trivia, with your wacko magic. Otherwise we'd be goners." Cendor looked over at his companions. "So, what are we going to do? We're stranded in the middle of… I think it's Detroit. We've got no food, no money, no transportation… "_

_Andrew snorted. "I'm sure you'll be able to steal all three, son of Mercury."_

_Cendor rolled his eyes. "Maybe, but first we have to get out of here. This place… it gives me the creeps."_

_Sirius knew how he felt. Something about this warehouse just seemed… off. Wrong._

_He looked at the logo in front of him._

" _Monocle Motors." Sirius muttered in his British accent, "Have either of you ever heard of it?"_

_Andrew shook his head. "Nope. Weird name, though."_

_Cendor looked thoughtful. "Actually, I have heard of it - it has something to do with war machines, I think. Other than that… dunno."_

_They sat in silence for a minute, contemplating this interesting mystery._

_One that would kill two of them._

Sirius shook himself out of his stupor as the next few hours of that dreadful day tried to resurface.

No. He was not going to think about what happened afterwards. He was not going to think about how the cyclopes had captured Cendor after they had split up to gather supplies, how he and Andrew had stumbled upon them, watching as they slowly roasted Cendor alive as he screamed in agony, the Cyclopes then leisurely killing and eating him…

How Andrew, a demigod who was more of a brother to him than Regulus had ever been, sacrificed himself; shielding Sirius as he used his magic to end the absolute horror taking place.

The memory of the explosion rang in his ears.

But Sirius could not, _would_ not think about it.

A tear slipped down his cheek anyway.

* * *

Nico left the Herbology greenhouse, absolutely despairing over his situation with Persephone.

Apparently, the curse she had set on him was real.

His fellow Slytherins had loved it, of course; they'd doubtlessly enjoyed watching all of greenhouse three shrivel away into dust. But Nico now had a month's detention with Professor Sprout.

He'd had some _bad_ experiences with detentions.

Nico walked faster, letting out a string of nasty Italian curses as a patch of dandelions died at his feet. Why in Olympus could the gods _not_ leave him alone? Didn't he deserve at least a _few_ seconds of peace before getting randomly cursed or tortured?

Nope. Not according to the Fates, anyway.

"That was brilliant!" Draco Malfoy had caught up with him. "How'd you do that, di Angelo?"

He raised an eyebrow at the older boy. "I didn't do anything."

"Oh, sure. Then care to explain why our entire greenhouse just up and died?"

Nico rolled his eyes. "I got cursed by my stepmother."

Draco turned toward him, surprised. "Stepmother?"

Great. The guy was digging into his family again.

"I -" Nico was saved from having to weave another lie about the godly side of his family by a loud crash (and quite a few screams). He wondered briefly if another member of said family had decided to wreak havoc upon him again. _Please Fates - please don't -_

Nico's hopes of it _not_ being godly were dashed as he saw the wreckage.

A heap of smoking, bronze metal lay on the Hogwarts lawn.

_Celestial bronze_ metal.

_What the Hades?_

Nico ran over to the enormous deposit of godly metal, pushing through the small crowd of students forming around him.

When he saw the scrawny Latino boy crawling out of the giant mess, Nico lost the ability to breathe.

" _Leo?"_

Said demigod had a similar reaction upon seeing him.

" _Nico?_ What - what're you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same, falling out of the sky like that -"

Before Leo could reply, a pretty girl in a red t-shirt and dark blue jeans crawled out behind him. The look on her face was murderous.

"Leo! Where - are - we?"

Leo jumped. "Well actually, Calypso… I'm not sure."

Nico's brain froze. _Calypso?_

"Wait -Leo, what -"

"Long story."

Before Leo could elaborate, however, Professor Dumbledore strode out onto the lawn.

"What is going on, Mr. Di Angelo?"

Oh, _Tartarus._

* * *

Leo had been pretty sure Nico di Angelo wasn't supposed to attend a school of insane, robe-wearing, pointy hatted wizard people. He had also been pretty sure that he himself should not be attempting to attend said school.

Well, there was a first for everything…

The Sorting Hat, of course, had been slightly creepy. And the fact that he was now a prisoner in a place named after a wild pig with a disgusting skin condition was also a bit off-putting.

But if they were going to let him and Calypso learn magic in this new jail…

Hades, _yes._

He lay back in his new bed, underground in the Slytherin dorms, thinking over the past few hours. Calypso snored softly beside him.

Festus, the Physician's Cure… Did he just come back from the dead yesterday? To him, it felt like a year.

Or… maybe it _had_ been a year. Leo still had no idea how much time had passed during the time he and Calypso had been trying to escape that cursed island.

_Time is difficult in Ogygia._

_You got that right, Sunshine._ Leo looked over at the sleeping Titan goddess next to him. He still couldn't believe he was dating - actually dating - Calypso. It was only too good to be true.

Sighing, he let his eyes flutter shut. Leo's thoughts quickly turned onto a different path (ADHD, duh), and he began to wonder when he'd be able to see his friends at Camp Half-Blood. Even though to him, they'd only been apart a few days, Leo desperately missed the rest of his former crew. He just hoped the wizards would get this whole falling out of the sky thing sorted faster.

Yeah, right. That was _definitely_ wishful thinking.

_Watch out Hogwarts,_ He thought, _Leo Valdez, bad boy supreme..._ is here.

* * *

Mesperyian hadn't wanted to possess the Aphrodite girl.

Cho Chang was just so… so unremarkable. Mesperyian only ever enjoyed doing this to the powerful, sucking out their life force with her pain; watching as the soul of the once mighty human shriveled into a husk and bent to her will. It was what she had attempted to do with Nico, after all.

Every good villain needed her own minions. Who better than her very own demigod brother - the dark, powerful _Nico di Angelo_?

But overtaking the Chang girl had been necessary. Mesperyian _had_ learned from her past mistakes. Her first plan had been too bold, too noticeable. But now…

She had the perfect pawn. The perfect spy to take down both di Angelo _and_ Potter - as her partner, Mr. Riddle had wished. Uncle Orcus would definitely be proud.

_Enjoy the little peace you have now, dear brother mine,_ she thought; a cruel, disfigured smile curving on her mask. _For the worst is soon to come._

* * *

Nico wasn't sure how to react to the half-giant. Sure, the guy seemed harmless enough, but… well, he hadn't had a great experience with giants in the past.

Being shoved in a bronze jar for a week tended to do that to people.

But at least they weren't studying bowtruckles anymore - those had been horrendous. The thestrals were _much_ better. And less murderous… oh, the irony. Death horses less murderous than stick men.

Nico's ADHD thought train stopped when he heard a familiar noise.

" _Hem, hem."_

Professor Umbridge had arrived. She was standing a few feet away from Harry Potter, wearing a green hat and cloak, her clipboard at the ready. Hagrid, who had never heard Umbridge's fake cough before, was gazing in some concern at the closest thestral, evidently under the impression that it had made the sound.

" _Hem, hem."_

Nico tried not to laugh at Leo's disgruntled look when he saw the woman.

Valdez turned to him. "Who is _she_? And why do I feel like I want to throw up?"

Nico's case of Umbrigitis had spread.

"That's Professor Umbridge. Her sadistic aura must be sickening you too." The son of Hades shuddered. "But stay away from her - that (censored) once tortured me in a dungeon for my detention."

Leo's eyes widened. Will, who was standing next to the son of Hephaestus, only gritted his teeth. "Oh, when I get my hands on her…"

Nico rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know - you've only said so about a million times."

"Shut it, di Angelo."

Before the two of them could start bickering, the devil of the mortal world interrupted again.

"You received the note I sent to your cabin this morning?" said Umbridge, in a loud, slow voice towards Hagrid - as though she was addressing somebody both foreign and very dumb. "Telling you that I would be inspecting your lesson?"

"Oh yeah," said Hagrid brightly. "Glad yeh found the place all righ'! Well, as you can see - or, I dunno - can you? We're doin' thestrals today -"

"I'm sorry?" said Umbridge loudly, cupping her hand around her ear and frowning. "What did you say?"

Hagrid looked a little confused.

"Er - thestrals!" he said loudly. "Big - er - winged horses, yeh know!"

He flapped his gigantic arms hopefully. Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows at him and muttered as she made a note on her clipboard, " ' _has... to… resort… to… crude… sign… language… ' "_

Nico facepalmed. _Oh, damned Hades…_

"Well… anyway..." said Hagrid, turning back to the class and looking slightly flustered. "Erm… what was I sayin'?"

" ' _Appears... to... have… poor… short… term… memory… ' "_ muttered Umbridge, loudly enough for everyone to hear her. Draco Malfoy looked as though Christmas had come a month early; Hermione Granger, on the other hand, had turned scarlet with suppressed rage. The three demigods (and one Titan goddess) could only stare at the ridiculous scene unfolding with matching looks of disbelief.

"Oh yeah," said Hagrid, throwing an uneasy glance at Umbridge's clipboard, but plowing on valiantly. "Yeah, I was gonna tell yeh how come we got a herd. Yeah, so, we started off with a male an' five females. This one," he patted the first horse to have appeared, "name o' Tenebrus, he's my special favorite, firs' one born here in the forest -"

"Are you aware," Umbridge said loudly, interrupting him, "that the Ministry of Magic has classified thestrals as 'dangerous'?"

"Why?" Nico asked loudly.

Umbridge turned towards him, nose wrinkling in distaste. "Why? These creatures represent death, of course. That makes it Dark, and therefore classifies as dangerous."

Nico opened his mouth to reply - that comment had been seriously insulting - but Hagrid beat him to it, chuckling.

"Thestrals aren' dangerous! All righ', they might take a bite outta you if yeh really annoy them -"

" ' _Shows… signs… of… pleasure… at… idea… of… violence… ' "_ muttered Umbridge, scribbling on her clipboard again.

"No - come on!" said Hagrid, looking a little anxious now. "I mean, a dog'll bite if yeh bait it, won' it - but thestrals have jus' got a bad reputation because o' the death thing - people used ter think they were bad omens, didn' they? Jus' didn' understand, did they?"

Umbridge did not answer; she finished writing her last note, then looked up at Hagrid and said, again very loudly and slowly, "Please continue teaching as usual. I am going to walk" - she mimed walking - Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson were having silent fits of laughter - "among the students" - she pointed around at individual members of the class - "and ask them questions." She pointed at her mouth to indicate talking.

Hagrid stared at her, clearly at a complete loss to understand why she was acting as though he did not understand normal English. Nico wasn't sure whether to laugh or punch something at the pure bigoted idiocy of Umbridge. No matter what he thought about giants, Nico knew Hagrid wasn't like the ones he'd met. Umbridge had no right to treat him this way.

"Erm... anyway," said Hagrid, clearly struggling to regain the flow of his lesson, "so - thestrals. Yeah. Well, there's loads o' good stuff abou' them… "

"Do you find," said Professor Umbridge in a ringing voice to Pansy Parkinson, "that you are able to understand Professor Hagrid when he talks?"

Pansy had tears in her eyes, but these were tears of laughter; indeed, her answer was almost incoherent because she was trying to suppress her giggles. "No… because… well… it sounds… like grunting a lot of the time… "

Umbridge scribbled on her clipboard. Hagrid's face flushed, but he tried to act as though he had not heard Pansy's answer.

"Er… yeah… good stuff abou' thestrals. Well, once they're tamed, like this lot, yeh'll never be lost again. 'Mazin' senses o' direction, jus' tell 'em where yeh want ter go -"

"Assuming they can understand you, of course," said Malfoy loudly, and Pansy Parkinson collapsed in a fit of renewed giggles. Professor Umbridge smiled indulgently at them and then turned to Nico.

"You can see the thestrals, di Angelo, can you?" she said.

Nico nodded, wondering where this was going.

"Whom did you see die?" she asked, her tone indifferent.

He raised a slow eyebrow. "If you wanted me to name them all, we'd be here until next week."

Umbridge's expression soured. "Do not lie, Mr. Di Angelo." She looked down at her clipboard, and wrote, " ' _Clear… lack… of… respect… among… students…' "_

Nico's mouth dropped open. " _Lying?_ I wasn't -"

But Umbridge was ignoring him again. Nico tried not to kill someone.

"Well, Hagrid," she turned to look up at the half-giant again, speaking once more in that loud, slow voice, "I think I've got enough to be getting along with… You will receive" - she mimed taking something from the air in front of her - "the results of your inspection" - she pointed at the clipboard - "in ten days' time." She held up ten stubby little fingers, then, her smile wider and more toad like than ever before beneath her green hat, she bustled from their midst, leaving Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson in fits of laughter, Nico actually shaking with fury, and the rest of the Gryffindors in the class looking confused and upset.

As the class dispersed half an hour later, the demigods followed the Golden Trio back to Hogwarts, the angry Gryffindors' conversation drifting back to them.

"That foul, lying, twisting old gargoyle!" stormed Hermione, as they made their way back up to the castle through the channels they had made earlier in the snow. "You see what she's up to? It's her thing about half-breeds all over again - she's trying to make out Hagrid's some kind of dim-witted troll, just because he had a giantess for a mother - and oh, it's not fair, that really wasn't a bad lesson at all - I mean, all right, if it had been Blast-Ended Skrewts again, but thestrals are fine - in fact, for Hagrid, they're really good!"

_Blast-Ended Skrewts?_

"Umbridge said they're dangerous," said Ron.

"Well, it's like Hagrid said, they can look after themselves," said Hermione impatiently, "and I suppose a teacher like Grubbly-Plank wouldn't usually show them to us before N.E.W.T. level, but, well, they _are_ very interesting, aren't they? The way some people can see them and some can't! I wish I could."

"Do you?" Nico spoke up behind them. All three jumped.

Ron stared at him. "Blimey, I thought I'd get used to that, what with you doing it so often in the D.A. meetings and all…"

Nico rolled his eyes - yes, he and Will _had_ gone to Harry's defense meetings - and to his surprise, he'd actually found it quite enjoyable. (Mostly because the Room of Awesome that they practiced in would give him whatever he wanted; and Nico had been in a shortage of knives - the only ranged weapon he could use. But whatever.)

"Maybe one day I'll give you a heart attack, and Hermione could get her wish - win-win, right?"

Leo snorted behind him.

* * *

December arrived, bringing with it more snow and a positive avalanche of homework for the fifth years. Ron and Hermione's prefect duties also became more and more onerous as Christmas approached. They were called upon to supervise the decoration of the castle ("You try putting up tinsel when Peeves has got the other end and is trying to strangle you with it," said Ron, "I don't know how Nico ever controls the git."), to watch over first and second years spending their break times inside because of the bitter cold ("And they're cheeky little snotrags, you know, we definitely weren't that rude when we were in first year," said Ron), and to patrol the corridors in shifts with Argus Filch, who suspected that the holiday spirit might show itself in an outbreak of wizard duels ("He's got dung for brains, that one," said Ron furiously). They were so busy that Hermione had stopped knitting elf hats and was fretting that she was down to her last three.

Will was only slightly amused at all this. But there was still one thing on his mind…

He bent over lower on his History of Magic, chuckling, and trying not to think about Christmas.

His brain, however, didn't listen.

Will was going to the Underworld… oh, gods. Why did Hades want him there anyway? He was a son of _Apollo,_ for Olympus's sake. Hades _hated_ Apollo. So, why… ?

He shook his head in confusion, clearing away his anxiety. There was no use beating himself up over Hades's plans; Hades was Hades, and he was going to do what the god wanted - whether he wanted to or not.

So he waited, all through week and the last meeting of the D.A., and winter break… soon came. But Will was ready.

He just hadn't been expecting to be kidnapped by zombies in the middle of the night.

"Ow! What the heck?" He glared at Jules-Albert and the rest of the zombie crew, who were currently shoving him into a black body bag. "What're you -"

Will was tossed into the shadows.

He landed with an "oof" on a cold stone floor. Laughter could be heard above him as the knot on his bag was untied.

When Will climbed out of the body bag and saw who it was, his jaw dropped. "N-Nico? Are you okay?"

The Italian didn't answer for a few minutes, gasping for breath. Finally, Nico choked out, "So that's how father was planning on sending you here. How… predictable."

Will could only stare in shock.

Suddenly, there was another thump, and a second body bag tumbled out of the shadows.

Nico frowned. "Who -"

He got his answer when it burst into flames.

"Leo, what -"

Then another bag fell to the floor.

Will raised an eyebrow. "And that's Calypso," he said as the black plastic emanated quite a few colorful Greek curses.

"What are _they_ doing here?" Nico muttered.

"Doing _where_?" Leo asked from inside his burning bag. "Where _are_ we?"

"The underworld." Nico answered, slowly backing away from the flames. "Leo, please stop setting everything on fire. Hades'll punish us for that, you know."

Another string of curses burst from the third body bag.

And then -

"Speak of the devil," Will murmured, as Hades appeared in a flash of violet light, "Literally."

Nico, seeing his father, dropped to one knee. Will, being the smart guy that he was, decided to follow his example, as he didn't want to be pitched into Tartarus; even the body bags beside him stopped flaming and cursing.

"Hello, son. Spawn of Apollo. Random other demigod. Titan goddess." Hades inclined his head at each of them. "Well, this is awkward. I don't remember inviting the other two. Hmph… Dionysus's visit must have gotten me drunk."

He sighed at his son's shocked face. "What?"

Nico stared at Hades as if he were an alien. "You're not going to go all death-aura-terrifying?"

Hades gave him an exasperated look. "I'm tired, Nico. Persephone's been screaming at me all week. I really don't have the energy to properly scare you idiots. You're lucky I even greeted you at all. Now, please - go away and take your friends to your villa. I'm sure you have a few extra rooms there."

He disappeared.

Will was the first to regain his voice. "Now, that's just cold."

Nico shrugged. "Best you can get with Hades. He'll probably be back to normal tomorrow - and believe me… when he does, you'll wish you'd never come down here in the first place."

Leo, however, had only heard one word. " _Villa?"_

* * *

Yes, Nico owned a villa in Elysium.

Leo, of course, was almost bursting with excitement. He bounded up to the imposing black doors, smoke trailing from his ears.

"Careful," Nico glared, "If you burn my house down, I'll send you to the Fields of Punishment."

But Leo ignored him; he had spotted the pool.

"Woohoo!" He jumped off the porch, and ran towards it; cannonballing in and swimming around with his clothes still on. "Nico, your place is awesome. I don't regret being kidnapped anymore!"

Calypso rolled her eyes. "You're an idiot, Valdez."

Then, she too jumped in the pool. To Nico's horror, they spontaneously began to make-out - in his pool. _What the (censored)?_ He would never understand couples.

Unable to stand the scene any longer, Nico ran inside as Will, who was laughing like a madman, followed. Annoyed, he turned as the door slammed shut.

"What's so funny?"

"You - your face…" Will tried hard to breathe. "Oh, man…"

Nico huffed. "Whatever, Solace." He was about to prepare his death glare when he remember than the son of Apollo was oddly immune to it. He settled on a neutral look. "Anyway, welcome. Go find a room, or whatever."

Will looked at him as if he were insane. " _What?_ No - have you seen the size of this place? - I'll get lost!"

"Then call for the butler." Nico said, as if it were obvious.

Will stared. " _You have a butler?!"_

**A/N: So, Leo has appeared! And Sirius's story is explained... what do you think?**

***Also, I'm planning on Nico and Will having some sort of dangerous adventure in the Underworld sometime soon. Except, I'm (*gasp*) out of ideas. Please help, anyone?**


	11. More Than Just Allies

****

**Disclaimer: I. Don't. Own. This. Except the plot, which I know is awesome.**

**A/N: So - before you kill me - I'M SORRY! I was going to post this earlier, but my teachers seemed to be desperate to pile as much homework on me as possible before winter break. Don't worry though, now that it _is_ break, I can probably update every two days. I hope. XD**

"Really? You're not messing with me?" Piper gaped at Nico, tears of absolute joy streaming down her face, "Leo's back?!"

He smiled at her, face muscles hurting like crazy from the strange exercise. "Yes, Piper. Leo's back, and alive. And…" His smile turned mischievous, and a little bit conspiratory, "the _idiota_ brought a girlfriend."

Jason, who was eavesdropping from a bush behind the Aphrodite cabin, began to fangirl.

Piper squealed, oblivious to her boyfriend's identical reaction outside. "That's amazing! What's her name? Oh! Wait…" A knowing look came to her face. "Calypso."

Jason yelped in surprise. Without thinking, he blurted out:

"Wait - who - _what?_ "

Nico jumped at the new voice that had come through the Iris Message. "Uh… Piper? Who's that?"

She only sighed, and called out, "Jason! Seriously, you're spying on me _again_?"

A sheepish looking Jason came into view, floating in the multi-colored mist.

"Hi, Nico."

Irritated, Nico slashed his hand through the fog, immediately cutting the connection.

_Now, how to fall asleep..._

* * *

Will awoke to screaming.

Tortured, bloodcurdling cries rang through the massive black villa, eerie and chilling in the darkness. Three words sprang to mind in the healer's blonde head.

_Nico. Nightmare. Help._

How he knew it was Nico, Will wasn't sure. But he was undoubtedly certain the son of Hades was the source of the screams.

Leo and Calypso were already awake, scrambling into his area of the house, pounding on Will's door and yelling for him - as he was their best (and only) healer.

Will jumped out his bed and ran, pushing past the panicked couple.

"Yo! Ivan!"

The Russian butler appeared in an instant, melting out of the shadows.

"Yes, Master Will?" Prince Ivan the Terrible stared back at him unblinkingly. The zombie really was creepy.

"Where's Nico? Take me to him now!"

Ivan shrugged. "As you wish." He grabbed Will's arm and pulled him towards a dark corner of the hallway.

Too late, Will realized what was happening.

"Wait - I didn't mean -"

They melted into the shadows.

Will resisted the urge to be sick as he stumbled out of the darkness into an even darker room. The screams were louder, emanating from a writhing heap on the bed in the corner.

All queasiness forgotten, Will rushed over.

"Nico! Nico, Nico - calm down, it's just a dream."

Nico continued screaming. Ivan stood and looked at him from a corner, unsurprised.

"Master Nico is perfectly fine. Nightmares are very common."

This didn't make Will feel any better. In desperation, he grabbed Nico's hand, trying to force some healing magic into it. A warm yellow glow filled the room, humming with Apollo's power. Ivan hissed and backed away into a shadowy corner.

Slowly, Nico began to wake, screams fading.

"W-Will?"

Utter relief flooded the son of Apollo.

"Nico, thank the gods you're okay. Nightmare?"

The other boy's haunted eyes bored into him. Nico sat up, pulling his knees to his chin.

"Maybe."

Will rolled his eyes.

"Don't lie. You were screaming your head off. What - what happened?"

Nico dropped his head, breaking eye contact.

"I don't want to talk about it. Tartarus isn't -" His eyes widened as if realizing what he'd just said. "Nevermind!"

Will glared at him. "What do you mean, 'Tartarus'?"

Nico panicked. The only people who knew where he'd been were the Seven, Reyna, and Coach Hedge. He didn't want anyone else to find out - he knew he wouldn't be able to stand their pity.

"N-nothing, Will. Forget about it." Nico turned, burying himself under the black covers. "I'm fine now."

Will wasn't buying it. "No, Nico. You're not fine. You're just trying to push me away - like you push everyone away." He knelt down next to the bundle of blankets in which the shivering son of Hades was hiding. "Please, what's wrong? I can help you. Why - why won't you trust me?"

' _Trust me.'_ The words bounced around Nico's head. Why wouldn't he trust Will? Why wouldn't he trust _anyone_? The answer was simple. He trusted no one because no one trusted him.

So, that was why the next words Will spoke absolutely astounded him.

" _I_ trust you, Nico. Why won't you do the same?"

Nico was speechless. The silence between them stretched on, tension thickening.

"W-what?" He finally choked out, breaking the silence. "Why would you… ?"

"Because you're _my friend_." Will tried to give Nico a death stare, which wasn't as effective as he had wanted on Nico, "Don't you trust your friends, Nico? Don't you trust _me_?"

Nico turned away, not wanting to answer.

Will's glare was stronger than he'd thought. "Nico."

"I-I don't know _how._ No one - not even my _friends_ \- have ever trusted me before." Nico smiled bitterly. "Not even after I walked through Tartarus to help them. Some friends."

Will stared at him, his angry glare melting into shock. " _Tartarus?_ You went to _Tartarus?_ I thought - I thought only Percy and Annabeth - wait, you were with them?"

"Ha. That's a sweet thought." Nico's face hardened into a glare, not caring if he said too much. He'd been holding in his feelings too long, and he needed an outlet. If Will wanted to hear about his worthless life, then so be it. "No. I went through Tartarus before them. Alone."

The son of Apollo couldn't believe his ears. "You - you… But why?"

Nico tipped his head back, gazing up at the swirling grey ceiling. "To stop Gaea, of course. And I would've succeeded too, if not for…" He shook his head, unwilling to speak about it.

Will's face was one of horror. "You were going to sacrifice yourself to close the Doors, weren't you?"

Nico shrugged. "No one would have missed me." He sighed. "But I didn't die, did I? No, I had to get myself captured…"

"Captured? By whom?"

"The giant twins, of course." He bit his lip, trying to avoid describing his imprisonment in the jar. "Will, do you remember how they - they captured Ares, back in the ancient times?"

Will racked his brain, his vast knowledge of Greek Mythology failing him. "What…" Then, with a sudden realization, his eyes widened. "No... the jar - they couldn't have."

"They did." Nico grimaced. "Ugh. I will never be able to eat pomegranate again."

Will frowned, confused. "Pomegranate?"

"I forced myself into a death trance. A single pomegranate seed could sustain me for a day. I was in there for seven."

Will stared at Nico with a mixture of horror and sadness. He knew the guy had lost his sister a few years ago - and wasn't there something about a time-warping casino? But this… this was insane.

"Nico." Will longed to hug the pale, broken teen, but he knew the gesture wouldn't be appreciated. "There's nothing I can say that will make up for what's been done to you. And I understand now, why you don't trust me. But know that I _am_ your friend. I'll always be here for you."

"Will you?" Nico looked back towards him, black eyes glittering like shattered glass. "The last person who said that… is dead."

"If that happens," Will said fiercely, "Then I will forever wait here in Elysium for you, you idiot. At least, if I do get into Elysium."

Slowly, a small smile graced Nico's lips. "Oh, you will. I'll make sure of that." He took a deep breath. "Thank you, Will. I may not trust you yet, but… I'm trying. And that's the closest I've gotten in five years."

Haunted black eyes met honest blue ones, and Eros released his flaming arrow.

* * *

Nico groaned, slumping into the throne room of Hades's palace and kneeling at the god's feet - more out of formality than respect.

"What do you want, Father? What could _possibly_ be so important at this hour?"

After Will had left, Nico had fallen asleep his first good dream in months…

Only for his father's idiotic raven to peck him awake, with a message to report to the throne room immediately, "or else".

So here he was, sleep deprived and exhausted; once again at mercy to his father's whims.

"Nico." Hades looked down at him, weariness visible in his stone-cold features. "I apologize, but I've actually called you here to help you."

"Oh, really?" Heavy sarcasm encased his words.

"Yes." Hades frowned at him. "Or else - well, Zeus wants me to kill him, you know. He thinks I brought him down here to do just that - but the real reason is to protect him. Zeus can't get to him while he's in my domain."

"W-what? Who?"

"The one named Leo, of course - I was lying about being drunk when he came down here. Zeus is angry - he hates cheating death almost as much as I do. And he hates it more, when that person used his own grandson to do so." Hades chuckled, thinking about the millions of furious golden eagles that had tried to infiltrate the underworld after he'd summoned Asclepius to heal Nico. "But, Nico… I know you don't deserve to watch another person you care for die. And if that means I have to bend the rules a bit - well, it wouldn't be the first time."

Nico stared up at his father, emotions tumbling and crashing in his chest. It was true, he did care about Leo. But was his father really willing to risk Zeus's fury to make _him_ happy? Hades had _never_ cared for him like this before.

"Y-you're not kidding me, are you?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?" Hades sighed. "But unless we can convince Zeus otherwise, Leo will have to stay in the underworld forever… and I don't think he'd like that."

Alarm lit Nico's eyes. He knew that tone... his father was definitely planning something now, he was sure of it. "So what are you going to do?"

"Well… Zeus is throwing a big party on Christmas, yet another celebration of Gaea's defeat. Heroes of Olympus are invited." Hades raised his eyebrows at him. "That includes you, Nico. And that Roman son of Jupiter… you are friends with him, no? Perhaps the two of you could convince Zeus to change his mind."

The plan seemed almost too easy. "And what's the catch?"

Hades bit his lip, unsure whether or not to tell his son the last bit of information he had held back. "The party is - well, a formal Greek one. And that means…"

Nico's face twisted in horror. "You're going to make me wear a tunic? No way!"

"You don't have a choice, Nico. Either you wear it, or Leo dies. Besides, the other demigods and gods will be dressed the same, so you won't stand out."

Nico growled under his breath. Hades was right, but still.

"Fine." He forced out. "Anything else?"

A strange emotion flitted across Hades's face before disappearing. If Nico hadn't known better, he would have sworn it was pride. "Nico… I'm sorry about the things I said to you, back before the Titan War. I completely misjudged your worth, and that is a terrible thing to do to your own son. You - and your mother - you've taught me to love again. Now, I'm trying return the favor… So please don't let me down. Find your own partner, like the other heroes. Perhaps," He winked, "That Will of yours, eh?"

At Nico's shocked face, he snorted.

"Oh, don't look so surprised. Of course I know your sexuality. Years of your endless blabbering about Percy, and you think I wouldn't?" Hades let out a barking laugh. "I don't _care,_ Nico. You may be from the 1940's, but I come from a millennial of years ago. _No one_ cared, back then. Do you know how many male lovers _I_ had?"

Nico was, for the second time that night, speechless.

Hades shook his head, smiling for the first time in one thousand years. "And people today are more accepting too. Gay marriage is legalized in all fifty states of the U.S." His voice softened. "You don't need to hide anymore, Nico."

Nico slowly found his voice, and he spoke in a hoarse, almost disbelieving whisper. "Thank you, Father."

"No need to thank me, my son." Hades nodded, dismissing him. "You deserve this."

Nico wanted to argue - how could _he_ of all people, deserve something like this? But he suspected Hades would not take it well. It was hard enough already for the god to show emotion; contradicting the lord of the underworld would not help. Swiftly, he nodded, getting up and turning towards the exit.

"And - Nico." He turned back to his father, who was giving him a stern look. "Don't you dare touch any of the alcohol at that party."

An amused smile curled onto Nico's pale face. He laughed, saluting his father with two fingers.

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Mesperyian growled, trying in vain to shapeshift back into the form of Eros. Her abilities had never failed her before - what was going on?

She took a deep breath and tried again, gripping the handle on her seven tailed whip of thorns. _Come on, come on…_

Nothing happened.

Somehow, her divine powers of impersonation were being blocked. And that could only happen… if the one she'd tried to become was aware of her actions and was consciously fighting against her. But - how could _Eros_ know? He hadn't known _last_ time she'd done it, that day on Half-Blood hill.

So how was she discovered?

A sudden realization struck her. _Of course…_ The arrow that had sent her into Tartarus - that hadn't been from the son of Apollo as she'd originally thought. It had come from behind. _Eros_ had saved her brother.

Anger surged through her, but she knew she couldn't attack Eros - not unless she wanted a dung beetle as a soul mate. No, she would have to plan this carefully…

Smiling evilly, Mesperyian set her trap.

* * *

"Go die," Nico moaned as he was roused for the third time in his sleep.

"Been there, done that!" Came the voice of a cheerful Latino. "Now c'mon, get up! Will made breakfast! You _need_ to try his pancakes, believe me."

Stiffly, Nico sat up, a curious expression on his face. "I've - I've never had pancakes before…"

Leo was shocked at this. How could someone go fourteen years without _pancakes_? Then, a huge grin split his face. Nico was in for the ultimate experience of his life.

"Come on, then! You have to - pancakes are awesome!"

Nico slowly dragged himself out of bed, mind racing. Leo's actions confused him; he could've sworn the demigod had been afraid of him, back on the Argo II. So what had changed? He tried to think of something, anything that would warrant this behavior. Nothing came to mind.

He resolved to ask Leo when he got out of the shower, unable to form a reason for himself. No one had ever changed so drastically in their attitude towards them - except for Jason, who had to go through the entire Croatia incident before becoming his friend.

Nico finally climbed out the shower stall of deliberation and asked Leo exactly what he was thinking, for once in his life being blunt - after all, what did he have to lose?

The expression went dark on Leo's normally cheerful face. He took a deep breath, looking away. "I was hoping you wouldn't notice… I - well, during our time together at Hogwarts, I… realized that you weren't as bad as you seemed - I stereotyped you on the Argo II, like all of the other demigods. But I shouldn't have; you're actually a pretty nice guy. So, I'm trying to make up for it." He looked back towards Nico, holding out a hand. "Friends?"

Nico stared at the brown, calloused hand that was offered to him. How he'd craved for years something like this, something that he'd finally found in Will… and now Leo. He decided not to hesitate, grasping Leo's hand with his own.

"Friends."

They headed down to breakfast together, Nico buzzing with a weird emotion - which Will, afterward, diagnosed as happiness.

It was going to be one of the last happy days he'd have in a long time.

**A/N: This turned out as more of a filler. Oh, well - there'll be more action in the underworld next time. And to those of you reviewers who gave me suggestions - I haven't forgotten you, I promise. But there are so many conflicting reviews that I need to figure out how to incorporate them all into the story before writing them.**

**Also, I am at a writer's block as to how the party with Zeus should go. Suggestions, please?**

**P.S. If you haven't noticed yet, I'll reply to _every single_ _review_ I get, so please do it - I won't ignore you. They really are helpful, even the ones with only positive comments, and nothing more. It is nice to know I don't suck at _something._**


	12. Mental Deception

**Disclaimer: Seriously, get a clue and look at Ch. 1-11. _I do not own._**

**A/N: I am not dead! But I'm _so sorry_ about breaking my promise of writing every two days. My parents dragged me on a surprise trip to Kalahari, so...**

"Seriously?" Nico shouted, slashing down another one of the vile creatures before the thing bit Calypso (who was lying in an unconscious heap at his feet). "Now you go _looking_ for monsters?"

"I only needed _one_ basilisk! I wasn't expecting to find a whole nest of them, honest!" Leo yelled back from across the shallow pit, burning three of the snakes to ashes with his bare hands. "Really, dude - I'm sorry!"

Nico growled in frustration. " _Stronzo."_ He scooped Calypso up and leaped over another puddle of steaming basilisk poison, landing gracefully next to the older boy. "I'll have to shadow travel now. Oh, Will is going to kill me."

Leo had created another one of his "ingenious" inventions - he'd claimed it could rival even the Valdezinator. The only catch? A vial of basilisk poison was needed for it to work. So he'd dragged Calypso on a search for them - a search that had been only _too_ successful, as he'd soon found.

Fortunately, he'd managed to contact Nico via screaming and setting himself on fire - but not before a rogue basilisk knocked his girlfriend out. Now, they were fighting for their lives along with a multitude of exploding zombie weasels, courtesy of the resident son of Hades.

"Grab onto my arm!" Said demigod shouted. Leo obeyed, clutching a flask of burning green liquid (basilisk poison) in the other - hey, a life and death situation could _never_ get in the way of his inventions.

Nico was… irritated upon seeing this - to put it mildly. But there was nothing he could do about Leo's idiocy besides keep it from killing the son of Hephaestus. Sighing, he mumbled a few (colorful) curses under his breath. _At least we're safe now,_ he thought as they melted into shadows.

A demigod should never say that.

As they traveled through the cold nothingness, Nico felt Leo and Calypso being pulled away…

A few miles away, Mesperyian laughed with delight. The plan was working perfectly.

* * *

Will was, unsurprisingly, livid when Nico told him the news.

"YOU _SHADOW TRAVELED_?! NICO DI ANGELO, WHEN WILL YOU GET IT THROUGH YOUR OBNOXIOUSLY THICK HEAD THAT THAT IS _DANGEROUS_?! YOU COULD HAVE _MELTED_ , YOU MORON!" He shouted - then took a deep, heaving breath, about continue his gods-damned rant, when Nico stopped him.

"Look, Will. I'm sorry, and you know that. But right now we have to look for Leo - he could be anywhere in the underworld. And… I have a feeling this wasn't a mere accident." Nico bit his lip, keeping the rest of his suspicions to himself - as that sharp, cold feeling he'd had while the demigods were separated came from one goddess only.

His dear psychotic half-sister.

Joy.

But he couldn't tell Will that - couldn't show how weak and helpless he was against Mesperyian's power; she couldn't capture him, obviously, without alerting Hades, but his friends? No problem… and Nico sensed the capture of Leo and Calypso was only a bonus - the real reason was to lure him in.

Well, it was working.

Nico was going to save his friends, no matter what the cost. He'd just gained someone to trust and be trusted by, and he wasn't about to lose that. Not again. (There was also that small matter of his father being _extremely_ angry at him for not keeping the idiot son of Hephaestus safe - even after all the trouble the god went through… but whatever.) He couldn't tell Will this, though - the overprotective blonde would never consent to him going off to Hades-knows-where again to save another demigod's life from sadistic enemies.

"Come on, Sunshine - there's a mirror in my room that'll show me whatever spirit I want to summon. It might work for living people too…"

"Hey!" Will frowned, all anger forgotten. "You can't call me Sunshine! I call _you_ Sunshine!"

Nico rolled his eyes, starting off towards the villa. "The name fits you more. I'm nowhere near 'Sunshine'."

They bickered all the way to Nico's room.

When they got there however, Nico went silent, fear clutching him as he went to pick up the small, unadorned mirror. It was the size of a drachma, with dark, obsidian colored streaks rippling mysteriously across the surface.

"Mirror, mirror -" He began, but Will cut him off, choking with laughter.

" _Mirror, mirror?_ What is this, Snow White?"

Nico glared. "Hey, it wasn't my idea. Shut up."

When Will had calmed down sufficiently, he started again.

"Mirror, mirror, in my hand,

Show me Leo and Calypso,

(Wherever they are),

In this dreadful land."

"That was a horrible rhyme." Will muttered.

"Like your father could do any better." Nico shuddered. "His haikus…" But before he could begin to rant about the evils of Apollo's poetry, a misty shape began to form in the mirror. Nico cut off and looked closer, squinting.

Naturally, it took the shape of a bronze jar.

The hand that was holding the mirror began to tremble, but he held on - frozen at the sight of two motionless heaps lying inside - Leo and Calypso. And if that wasn't bad enough, Nico could just barely make out a ring of people in dark cloaks standing around them, guarding the wretched prison. Followers of Voldemort…

Thanatos Eaters.

"Hades..." Will mumbled to himself, eyes widening in fear. Abruptly, the son of Apollo stood. "We have to help them." He grabbed Nico's arm. "C'mon Nico, let's go."

Nico jerked away, jolted by the touch. "No. We need reinforcements first. Those Thanatos Eaters… they're dangerous." A sudden realization unfolded in his mind. "But I know two people in Elysium who could be of some use."

He'd remembered the history lesson his father had given him on Harry Potter's history. James and Lily Potter had been murdered by Riddle and now lived in paradise, no doubt.

But their prince, Nico di Angelo, was calling them back into action, one last time.

* * *

The Potters were completely ecstatic about risking their afterlives for people they'd never even met.

"Blimey!" James jumped up and down in excitement, kicking up the sand on the beach like a small child on a sugar rush. "This place was getting right boring, you know? Finally, we get to do something!"

Lily was just as happy, though she was quite a bit calmer. "Yes, I do admit it was rather dull…"

Nico raised an eyebrow. Apparently, his father - while very creative in that of torture for the cursed - was lacking in the entertainment department for the blessed. Shaking his head, he turned back to the couple, still unsure in his decision. "It'll be dangerous though - Voldemort's followers are guarding it, and it's in the Fields of Punishment. I'll understand if you don't want to -"

James eyes flashed with anger, "Well, I definitely want to kick those Death Eaters' (censored) again, that's for sure. Lil', you in?"

She shrugged. "Why not?"

Will, who was silent until that point, broke into a wide grin. "Great! Let's go!"

Nico wasn't sure why he sounded so enthusiastic.

Nevertheless, they went, trudging down the blood covered path into the darkness that was shrouding the afterlife of the cursed.

* * *

Will was trying to put up a cheerful front, but the nightmarish scenes around them (exploding zombies, rotting skeletons, and random puddles of blood, etc.) were definitely not helping.

Neither were the "security" traps.

Apparently they were there to keep in malicious souls (so as to prevent another Sisyphus incident), but they did a good job of keeping benevolent ones out, too. Will was breathing hard after avoiding the acid-filled pits, random falling boulders, and walls of gnashing thorns. Nico, however, seemed unperturbed.

"I've seen all of this before," he muttered when James asked him "how in Merlin's underpants he could be so calm in this hellhole!", "I mean, my father usually turns it off when I want to visit a soul here, but sometimes he's absent or just tired, so I learned to navigate it by myself."

Lily glared at him. "Then why don't you tell your father to do that now, so _we_ don't get killed?!"

Nico didn't even flinch at her murderous look. "Obviously I can't tell Hades that I accidentally put Leo's life in danger - not after he went through such measures to keep the guy safe. He'd probably incinerate all of us."

Lily huffed in annoyance, but didn't question the Ghost King any further.

Despite it being his fault they were even there in the first place, Will was starting to enjoy Nico's company. Something about the moody, dark-haired teen gave him a feeling of reassurance - comfort, even. The exact opposite of what most people would expect around the son of Hades.

But Nico di Angelo wasn't a stereotypical son of Hades like everyone at camp made him out to be, Will mused; because if someone took the time to look closer, they would have found that Nico was just another one of them, a brave demigod who would sacrifice anything for his friends.

_Also, he's hot._

Wait. Where had _that_ thought come from?

* * *

The four of them finally arrived at the bronze jar, which was located in the heart of the Fields. Scratched up, bruised, and tired after saving the other three from painful death traps about a million times, Nico wanted nothing more than to go to sleep.

Unfortunately - as they neared their destination - the Thanatos Eaters spotted them, and battle ensued immediately.

Nasty curses flew over their heads, a lightshow of pain and death. Lily and James held them back the best they could, but the numerous Death Eaters were beginning to overwhelm them.

"Do your whistle," Nico muttered to Will in a low voice, "I'll cover our ears with shadow." As he said this, eight tiny bits of darkness glued themselves into all four pairs of ears.

Taking a deep breath, Will lifted two fingers to his mouth, emitting one of the most horrible noises in the world. Death Eaters were caught off guard, stumbling and moaning. The Potter couple took this as a chance to incapacitate most of them, red light shooting out the ends of their wands.

In a flash, Nico ran through the falling ranks of the dark wizards, reaching the jar instantly. Remembering how the giants had freed him before, Nico summoned a few zombies, using them to help him push the jar over. It fell onto its side, lid cracking and tumbling off. Leo and Calypso lay inside, still unconscious, but breathing.

A wave of relief crashed over Nico, and he ran forward into the jar to free them.

Then, everything went wrong.

As he grabbed Leo's arm, intending to drag the scrawny boy out of that torturous prison, a sudden light flashed before his eyes. His hand burned. Looking up, he saw…

"Bianca?"

His sister, looking as alive as ever, was standing in the jar a few feet away.

"Nico," she whispered in a sad voice, "Nico, are you going to leave me again?"

The words hit him like a ton of bricks.

"W-what? But, Bianca - you left me! You -"

"No. You left _me._ You could've helped me, you could've saved me. But _you_ let me go. This is _your_ fault, liar!" Mesperyian smiled inwardly as Nico flinched. Shapeshifting into Bianca - now _that_ had been an ingenious plan.

"Bianca… please."

She glared at him. "Well? Go on! Save your stupid little friends. Leave me here then, like you always do."

"No!" Nico cried, tears in his eyes. "I don't understand - you were reborn. How - why -"

Mesperyian hissed. "Lies. I was trapped here the whole time. I even screamed for help. But did you hear? No. You left, and replaced me with that Hazel Levesque. Traitor."

"I - I -" Utter misery crossed his face, and he started towards her, reaching out slowly, "S-sorry. Please, Bia. Forgive me."

_A few more steps,_ Mesperyian thought malevolently, _a few more steps, and he's mine._

But as Nico continued to approach, shouts were heard from outside. Warm, tanned hands grabbed his shoulders, dragging the son of Hades away from his doom.

"Nico!" Will whispered. "Stop! That's not Bianca - it's a trap! Snap out of it!"

Clarity snaked back into Nico's eyes, and hatred slowly burned the tears away. "You." He growled. "Mesperyian."

He covered his ears as Mesperyian made to reply. She laughed.

"Ha! You think blocking out my words will make them less true?"

But Will, seeing his gesture, had understood. He grinned and whistled again, long and loud. Yelping, the tortured goddess of torture fell to the ground in pain, reverting back into her true form and disappearing in a flash of purple light. The son of Apollo jumped back in surprise.

"What the -"

"She was impersonating a Hunter of Artemis. They have enhanced hearing." Nico muttered as he bent over, showing a surprising amount of strength as he threw Leo over his shoulder. "Get Calypso. Let's go."

"Nico -"

"I don't want to talk about it." And just like that, the son of Hades shut him out again, walking out of the jar and into the darkness.

* * *

Mesperyian dropped back into Riddle's mansion with a howl, anger coursing through her. She'd underestimated that annoying Apollo spawn _again._ Now, her pride paid the price… it hated being humiliated by a puny demigod.

"Well?" A voice drawled from the throne above.

"Fine." She muttered, glaring up at Voldemort's smirking face, "What do you propose?"

* * *

Nico wasn't sure how he was doing it.

Pale fingers, long and slender, slid over the piano keys; letting out a beautiful sound from the baby grand. His eyes slid over the music, barely registering the notes before instinctively playing them.

Some part of Nico was confident, knowing exactly what was going on. Yet most of him didn't have a clue; trying and failing to explain what, in the unholy name of Tartarus, was happening.

Of course, it was all Hades's fault.

His father had locked him in this chamber with the piano a few days after the (second) jar incident. At first, Nico had thought it was a punishment for putting Leo in danger. It seemed cruel, though - the incident wasn't originally his fault, and hadn't he already rescued the son of Hephaestus anyway? Nico had said as much to Hades (also mixed in with a bunch of curses - such as his father being an unfair piece of schist, and whatnot).

But his father had only smirked as the door slammed shut, like Hades knew something he didn't.

Then (after much screaming and attempts to shadow travel), Nico had discovered the piano. Cautiously, he'd made his way over to it…

And before he knew it, he was playing Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata - almost perfectly - without a single clue how it was happening. Yet, as Nico continued, something tugged at him in the back of his mind. Slowly, as if reeling in a giant fish from the water, a vision flooded his mind.

It was a memory.

_Nico seemed to be around five, staring curiously at the large - but elegant - black piano that had appeared yesterday in the ballroom of the di Angelo family mansion. His mother stood next to him, along with a stranger - a man in his forties who frowned down at him judgmentally._

" _Signora," He spoke in Italian, "Do you not think he is a bit… young?"_

_His mother laughed, a tinkling sound escaping her lips. She replied in the same language. "Of course not, Signore Alessi. Why, our Bianca started playing the violin at the same age - and look at her now! An absolute angel on the instrument."_

_The man, Alessi, still looked dubious, but he didn't argue. Instead, he turned and sat down on the bench next to the piano. He beckoned at Nico. "Come."_

_Confusedly, Nico took a seat next to him. "Who are you, signore?" He questioned in his high, childlike voice._

" _Your new music teacher, Nico." Maria answered. "He'll teach you how to play the piano - like Signora Garcia for Bianca's violin." She suddenly glanced up at a nearby clock and frowned. "Oh, look at the time. I must go - be good, mio figlio."_

_With that, his mother left._

" _Well?" Alessi broke the temporary silence. "Let's begin."_

* * *

_Alessi began visiting every week, and the music he had Nico play became increasingly harder. Soon, Nico found himself beginning to loathe the man, who would always glare and smack his hand with a ruler whenever he made a mistake - which was pretty often. He was_ nothing _like kind and sweet Garcia, whom his sister adored._

_And yet, even with Alessi's shadow looming over him, Nico found a certain joy at making such beautiful music spill from his fingertips. He improved more and more as time went on, and his mother began to send him to play in duets with Bianca at local concerts…_

More memories from his childhood overflowed into his mind, most insignificant - but there was one other that struck him.

It was after his mother had been killed - his father had sent him and Bianca back overseas to stay in Wool's Orphanage, before letting Alecto take them to the Lotus Hotel and Casino. He had had a friend at that orphanage.

By the name of Tom Marvolo Riddle.

**A/N: Sorry, I didn't get to the party yet... But I had to write the adventure I promised, didn't I? And I also added an extra scene where Nico gets his memories back. So... what do you think?**


	13. LET'S PARTY! (And Avoid Being Blown Up)

**Disclaimer: Ugh, I don't own this. Rub it in, won't you?**

**A/N: So, this every two days thing is _not_ working out. I'll just stick with updating weekly, then. And as for the reviews with suggestions on the party - if I didn't follow yours, don't worry! I'll get your ideas (or at least part of them) in by the second chapter. Just wait and see.**

"I see the key to your memories took on the shape of your mother's beloved instrument." Hades's voice sounded behind him, shaking Nico out of his trance and causing him to jump.

His hands, which had been gliding gracefully over the ivory keys of the enchanted piano, froze immediately. "W-what? A key?" His father rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Nico. Why do you think I locked you in here? This room is specially designed for returning buried memories - without driving the person insane. The key to doing it, though, takes on many forms. I am surprised what yours turned out to be." He chuckled. "Huh. _Piano_ keys. I should have guessed."

An awkward silence ensued, stretching on and strengthening the tension between them. Then, a flicker of annoyance crossed Nico's face. "You - you couldn't've just _told_ me all this, instead of randomly dumping me here and locking the door? I thought I was being punished, for Elysium's sake!"

Hades sighed, and rolled his eyes again. "I wish. The user can't know true purpose of this chamber for the magic to work. Ask Hecate if you want a three day lecture on why."

Nico shuddered. "No thank you. But wait… Hecate created this?"

"Payment in return for your services to her on this quest. I still think it's inadequate, but," His father shrugged, "there is only so much a god can do."

Nico bit his lip and nodded absently, barely taking the explanation.

His mind was still reeling from his discovery. Tom Marvolo Riddle, legacy of Hades. Once his closest friend, and now, apparently… his (second) worst enemy. And technically his nephew.

Argh. Why was _everything_ in his life so _messed up?_ What had he ever done to the Fates? Seriously, this situation… this was pushing it too far.

Hades, unaware of the mental rant going on inside his son's head, scowled at Nico's lack of reaction. "Well?"

Mind snapping back to reality, Nico shook his head, clearing the thoughts. "What? Oh… Thank you, Father. I appreciate it." He decided not to tell Hades of his dilemma - he wasn't even sure his father would care.

Hades nodded. "Alright, then. Go back to your house, I expect you'll want to get ready for the party today. And remember - absolutely _no_ alcohol for you, you hear me?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Then, Nico froze.

It was Christmas _already?_

* * *

Nico was extremely irritated.

_Uh, no._

Understatement of the century.

More like… he wanted to summon a humongous army of skeletons to kidnap Zeus and chop him into tiny little pieces to throw him into the depths of Tartarus; the only reason holding him back being that Will would do the same thing to him if he almost faded…

(The amount of control that son of Apollo held over him was _infuriating._ )

And why, did Nico di Angelo want to murder the king of gods?

Three words.

Greek. Dress. Code.

His father hadn't been kidding when he said the party was formal. Nico had actually been forced to wear that infernal black tunic - which was complete with an oversized, billowy cloak and weird ceremonial knife made of Stygian Ice. The costume made him look like the Ancient Greek version of the Grim Reaper, for the gods' sakes! And Leo was _still_ jealous of him for being able to go to that party? (Yes, Leo _was_ considered one of the Heroes of Olympus invited… but he couldn't very well go to _Zeus's_ party without being incinerated, now could he?)

Then, there was the matter of the shoes.

They didn't even deserve to be called that… the *shudder* sandals.

But really. _Sandals?_ He had to wear gods-damned _sandals?_ Why?! What was the point of wearing sandals when his enchanted black Converse would do just fine on the sacred godly floors? Besides, the cloak covered his feet anyway. It wasn't like anyone would notice!

Alas, his father was deaf to Nico's very logical reasoning.

So that was how he found himself shadow traveling into the Empire State Building and scaring all the mortals, which caused minor chaos before the Mist clouded their sight. Nico really didn't blame the civilians for panicking. Even to him, the hooded black cloak was seriously creepy-looking.

"600th floor," he muttered to the elevator guy.

The man scrambled to obey, handing him the key and not even _trying_ to defy his request. This, Nico thought, further proved that the cloak was overkill.

But as he stepped into the elevator, Nico found his train of thought straying away from his ridiculous clothing and to the task ahead. Nervousness took over his senses, causing him to wonder if he'd come back to his father alive... Zeus was not known his calm temper, after all. What if Nico couldn't convince him? What if Zeus decided to just blast Nico on the spot? What if -

He was shaken out of his morbid thoughts when the elevator dinged, doors sliding open. Then, his brain merely froze, trying to take in the scene before him.

It was… well, godly.

A brilliant white path covered in multicolored flower petals led from the elevator into the city. Floating golden lights shimmered around it, spherical orbs that emitted feelings of harmony and warmth. The actual city was even brighter, a shining beacon in the sky… only Apollo's sun chariot could rival it.

Nico would hate to die in such a beautiful place. Unfortunately, the Fates probably didn't share his opinions, as he almost tripped, and fell off the walkway on his first step. He groaned and got up.

_Nice._ Nico thought sarcastically. _What a wonderful start, di Angelo._

But his embarrassment faded as he continued forward, passing through the gates and into Olympus. Instead, he could only gape as he looked around

The inside of the city was… wild.

His father had been right about the alcohol, at least. Beautifully sculpted fountains - courtesy of Annabeth, Nico guessed - overflowed with the very best wine. Drunken gods danced around it, taking big gulps of the luscious liquid. They were also doing numerous other things that could only mean they would be... _extremely_ hungover the next day -

Agh, schist. He hadn't needed to see _that._

Nico snapped his head in the other direction, blushing fiercely and trying not to fan his face like Hazel... His 1940's upbringing had _not quite_ prepared him for that scandalous display near the fountain.

Oh, yes. Hades was right (for once). _Don't_ touch the alcohol.

Quickly, Nico ventured further into Olympus - only to be greeted by an even more disturbing sight. Was that… a _statue_ of him? And… made out of _ambrosia?_ He walked closer to the weird amber replica of himself; suspicions confirmed when a rather fat god walked past and tore off a chunk of his foot, munching greedily. Nico looked around and noticed statues of the other heroes as well, all in various states of dismemberment.

He had to fight hard to hold in his lunch after that. Gods, it was frightening.

But before he could leave (read: get out of there as fast as possible), a voice called out his name.

"Nico! Hey, over here!"

He turned, eyes widening when he saw who it was. "Jason?"

The son of Jupiter was standing a few feet away, bronze glasses glinting in the sunlight. "Nico! Little bro!" Jason broke into a grin.

"What? Where?" Shouted another voice behind him… it was Percy. "Oh, wait! I see him now! Hey, Nico!"

"Per - oomph!" Nico found himself being knocked to the ground in a bone crushing hug. "Wha - hey - ow!" Percy had begun to squeeze him so tight, he wondered whether his ribs would still be intact after the ordeal. Finally, Nico found just enough breath to speak. "Jack - son. Can't - breathe."

"Oh, sorry!" Quickly, Percy let him go, offering a hand to help him up. Nico stood, surprised to see Percy wearing a white tunic and sandals. He knew he should have been expecting it, seeing how he himself was dressed… but still, imagining Percy in anything but jeans and a T-shirt wasn't easy. "It's just - I haven't seen you in such a long time, bro. Off to magic school, aren't you?"

Nico narrowed his eyes. "How do you know?"

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Hazel told us, of course. By the way, that Roman portal invention, it's -"

"Mentally scarring?" He interrupted dryly.

"I agree with you there." Jason had joined them, looping an arm around Nico's thin shoulders. He resisted the urge to jump away at the touch… but this was only Jason, after all. "Where's Leo? I need to punch him for scaring me and Piper like that."

Nico was reminded all too soon of his real mission here. "Well, about that - Leo couldn't come, actually. Zeus wants to kill him."

Jason and Percy froze. "What?" They asked simultaneously.

Nico bit his lip. "Zeus wants to kill Leo," he explained, "since he isn't pleased about Leo cheating death using his own grandson. He locked Asclepius up to prevent that situation exactly. So… he wants to kill Leo."

Electricity began to spark around them as Jason took in the information with a shocked expression. When it finally sank in, he glared, laid back attitude gone.

"I'm going to (censored due to graphic violence) my father." He growled. "Percy, you with me?"

Percy looked much the same, green eyes darkening. "Definitely."

"Wait!" Nico stopped them before they could do something stupid - like, oh… possibly marching off to kill the king of the gods in the heart of Olympus? "You can't just barge into the throne room and commit patricide - you'll get yourself killed, _idiota!_ We've got to be diplomatic with the gods - convince Zeus to see our side and let Leo go."

Percy and Jason both blinked. They spoke at the same time.

"Where's Annabeth?"

"Where's Piper?"

"Right here." Someone spoke from behind them. The boys whirled around.

The rest of the Seven (without Leo, of course), along with Reyna and Coach Hedge had gathered around the three as they were talking.

"So." Piper's eyes were stormy. "Zeus is being a (censored) again, isn't he?"

Raising an eyebrow at her choice of words, Nico nodded. "My father sent me here to convince him to let Leo live. Unfortunately, Zeus'll never listen to me. So -" he took a deep breath, unused to asking the question he was about to, "Help?"

Coach Hedge jumped up. "Yeah! Let's go kill him!"

For the second time that day, Nico had to hold back a half-human creature from murdering the lord of the sky.

* * *

Hestia decided to herself that the demigods must be crazy.

Really, what were the heroes thinking, intruding into the Olympian council like that? The reward ceremony wasn't in two hours! Were they _looking_ for a death wish?

What they tried to do next convinced her that they were.

"Father!" Called the son of Jupiter. "What is wrong with you?"

Zeus snapped his head downward, fury alighting in his eyes. The only reason preventing him from vaporizing Jason seemed to be the fact that… filicide was looked down upon in Ancient Greek society. (Or pretty much all society in general.)

"Son," he growled, " _What_ are you doing here?"

Hestia thought she saw a flicker of fear in her brother's eyes - one angry, powerful hero was one thing, but ten? That was a whole new problem. (Granted, the satyr didn't really count, but whatever.)

The daughter of Aphrodite - Piper, Hestia remembered - stepped forward. "We're here to bargain for Leo's life, whom you unfairly sentenced to death."

_What?_ Hestia didn't know anything of the sort. The other Olympians (the ones that were there, at least - Apollo was still incarcerated) shifted uneasily, just as confused as she was. Hephaestus frowned angrily.

Zeus let out a barking laugh. "Really? We'll see about that." He turned to the other gods. "Leave us, Olympians. It seems I have… unfinished business to attend to. Oh, and Ganymede - fetch me a lightning bolt, please."

Surprised and annoyed, the other gods slowly left in multicolored flashes of light. Hephaestus was the last to go, staring at Zeus suspiciously. A while later, a random minor god flew in, handing Zeus a giant bolt of lightning before flitting out again, shooting a pitying look towards the demigods.

Hestia didn't move from her place by the hearth - technically, she wasn't a real Olympian, and besides, she had a feeling that if she weren't there, things would get… messy. Thankfully, Zeus didn't even notice her presence, too wrapped up in his own anger to realize his order had been defied (yet again).

"So." He said, reclining on his throne in his twelve-foot form. "You insolent demigods choose defy us again. Sadly, you're too late. Leo Valdez has already been captured by Hades. He's most likely dead now."

"No." The di Angelo boy spoke up. "He's in the underworld, but not dead. Hades is keeping him safe from you."

Zeus froze, surprise and rage upon his face. "What?"

Di Angelo began to glow, arcs of lightning wrapping around his body.

"Hey!" He shouted. "Ow, that hurts!"

Immediately, Grace stepped in front of him, shielding the younger boy from the brunt of Zeus's anger. "Father, enough. Incinerating Nico won't earn you any points with the other Olympians - and neither will doing the same to Leo."

Zeus raised an eyebrow. "Why? Who would care for the useless Hades spawn?"

The other child of Hades/Pluto - Hazel Levesque - stepped forward. "Hades, duh. Are you _trying_ to start World War III?"

Zeus opened his mouth to reply, but Annabeth Chase interrupted. "We're getting off track here. This is about Leo - and his death would cause just as much of a war as Nico would." She stared up at the lord of the sky, grey eyes cold and calculating. "We've taken on a lot worse than you, Zeus. So do you really want to mess with all of demigod-kind? And there are quite a few gods that would side with us, too, so if there is a war… you know who the winning side will be."

Zeus glared, thunder and lightning crackling outside. "How dare -"

"Brother." Hestia decided to intervene. "Calm down before you do something you regret. These demigods aren't wrong, you know." As much as she thought they were insane, Hestia also understood their need to protect, and keep their family together in peace. But war was not a good way to go about gaining such things.

Zeus turned toward her, still glaring. "What are you doing here? I thought I told you to leave!"

Hestia rolled her eyes, but spoke patiently. "No, you told the Olympians to leave. I am not an Olympian, I've given up my throne. But that is not the point. My lord, would you really kill the hero who saved the world from Gaea, just because he tried to defy fate, tried to escape Thanatos for his twin, Eros?"

"Bah," Zeus muttered, "I don't care about his fate. _I_ care that he disrespected me, taking advantage of my grandson. No one but a god, an equal, is allowed to do such a thing."

Levesques stepped forward again, anger blazing from her very essence. "So you're implying Leo _isn't_ an equal? He's ten times better than you are!"

Zeus shot to his feet, glowing (yes, literally glowing) as he tried to contain his own fury. "You disrespectful -"

"Stop!" The flames from Hestia's hearth burned white hot, sending a heat wave of peace and soothing across the room. "Don't you dare ruin your own party by killing the honored guests." Stopping her own temper from getting out of control, Hestia sighed, patience wavering. "You must see reason, brother. On their quest, Nike pretty much _told_ Leo he would die. Of course he wanted to stop it. If you were in his situation, wouldn't you try to prevent it too?"

This made Zeus stop. "I -"

"The easiest thing to do is just for you to let this go. Leo Valdez wasn't trying to disrespect you. He was only trying to survive, like all mortals do - and if there were any other way, he would have chosen it. Let him live, Zeus. You will regret your decision otherwise."

Zeus sank back into his throne. He seemed to be having an internal argument with himself, a mixture of emotions running across his face. Finally he spoke. "Would you heroes forfeit you reward of becoming gods, if I let Leo Valdez stay alive?"

Percy Jackson looked affronted at the offer. "Aw, come on. Not this again!"

The praetor girl - Rina? Renee? - looked unimpressed. "With all due respect, my lord, I think that is a terrible reward."

The lightning bolt was raised again. "Girl -"

"Whoa, stop!" Piper McLean held up her hands. Charmspeak laced her voice as she spoke in a soothing tone. "Please, my lord, she meant no harm - of _course_ we would give up your wonderful gifts for our friend. Don't kill him."

Zeus grunted, lowering his weapon. "You talk pretty, McLean. Bah, Fine. I won't kill Leo Valdez."

"Swear it on the River Styx." Piper coaxed.

"I - I swear it on the River Styx." Zeus forced out. "There. Happy now?" He turned to Hestia, annoyance coating his words. "You can cancel the reward ceremony. Replace it with whatever you want, I don't even care anymore."

Then he disappeared in a flash of lightning.

"Dramatic as always." Muttered Jackson.

"Replace it?" Hestia muttered, an idea taking form in her head. A crafty smile lit up her face. "Oh, I will, don't worry."

She had the perfect plan.

**A/N: Another cliffie! What's Hestia going to do? Clue: Tonio Carriedo's review in a suggestion to what the party should be like. ;)**


	14. Return to Truth

**Disclaimer: I don't own. Seriously, do I really have to write this _every_ chapter?**

**A/N: _So_ sorry for not updating, but two tragic things have happened to me...**

**1\. School started again, and teachers are being extra evil. (Seriously, I had _four_ tests today. Four!)**

**2\. I got the BIGGEST writer's block in history. My mind was completely blank for two weeks... with the only real motivation to keep going being my homicidal friend, C, threatening to kill me (yet again).**

**So here it is. Kind of short, but oh well.**

Nico stared at the scene in disbelief. _This_ was Hestia's plan to replace the reward ceremony? Oh, for the love of Hades…

He was seated at a long table that had been set up in the throne room. Most of the Olympian gods were there as well (shrunk to human size), along with their demigod children. Naturally, chaos had erupted immediately when they found out what was going on.

Apparently, they were having a _family dinner._

And from Nico's experience with family dinners in the underworld…

This wasn't going to end well - at best, only the throne room would be destroyed. At worst?

Everything on Olympus would go up in flames, and Nico would not survive the night.

(So… maybe that was a bit dramatic. But he knew it could full well happen, and Nico wasn't about to take any chances - not after the day _he'd_ had.)

Already, most of the gods were arguing (read: screaming and hurling random weapons at each other) while their children secretly drew up escape plans.

"What do you mean," Aphrodite shouted at Athena, "You don't ship Percabeth?! What is wrong with you?!" A pink glittery fork flew from her hand… and missed. Epically. Nevertheless, Aphrodite continued her rant. "Even - even _Poseidon_ ships it, how can you _not?!_ "

Athena glowered. "My daughter deserves better than that insolent sea scum. Don't you agree, Annabeth?"

"Uh…" For once in her life, Annabeth was at a loss of words. She looked to Percy for help, unsure how to answer without being blown to ashes by either her own mother, or her boyfriend's father. But said boyfriend was as clueless as always, blanking looking from Athena to Poseidon with a bewildered expression on his face.

Fortunately, a giant explosion interrupted the argument before anyone died. As Nico blinked the spots out of his eyes, the blinding light slowly cleared away and revealed Zeus in all his tunic-clad glory.

"Hestia, you are an idiot." He declared, upon seeing what lay before him.

"Hey," Percy muttered, "It's _you_ who appointed her to replace the ceremony in the first place."

Zeus snapped his head down, glowering in suspicion. "What was that, Perseus Jackson?"

"Nothing." Percy smirked. Nico wanted to smack him for being so bold.

Tense silence raged between the two for a moment, Percy grinning infuriatingly and Zeus glaring, infuriated. He seemed to be deliberating whether or not blasting Percy to bits was worth it. Finally he turned, and walked stiffly to the head of the table… then promptly began a new glaring contest with Hephaestus.

"Awk-ward," Jason whispered. The other demigods nodded in agreement.

Hestia sat next to her brother, unperturbed by all the drama unfolding around her. With a serene smile on her face, she began to speak. "Alright… everyone has arrived, yes?" When they all nodded silently, she continued. "Then, let's feast!"

Hestia clapped her hands, and a whirlwind of nature spirits bustled in, bringing forth a mix of traditional Ancient Greek cuisine and modern day delicacies. They heaped platter after platter of food onto the table, the wonderful aroma making Nico's mouth water.

All awkwardness forgotten, both demigod and god alike dug into the delicious food. For an entire minute, only the the sounds of utensils scraping against plates and greedy chewing could be heard.

The temporary peace, sadly, did not last.

Poseidon frowned down at his catfish in annoyance. "Too bland," he mumbled under his breath, breaking the silence and looking up. "Percy," he said to his son, "will you pass the salt?"

This cued Percy to reach towards the salt in front of him, which accidentally knocked over the pepper next to it; which then caused Annabeth to sneeze and Aphrodite and Athena to start arguing again; which motivated Zeus and Hephaestus to start a shouting match of their own; and it ended in… utter chaos (again).

Hermes surveyed the display with a mischievous grin. "This is more interesting than the time I stole Apollo's cattle!"

Apollo shot an arrow at him in reply.

* * *

When Nico finally limped home - the family dinner, as he predicted, had ended in the destruction of the entire throne room - it was already after midnight, Will sound asleep and Leo already returned to Camp Half-Blood with Calypso.

His villa was as silent as a tomb, imposing and ominous in the darkness. As soon as he entered, Nico's battle instincts kicked in, along with a distinct feeling that something was _not_ right.

Exhausted, but unable to sleep because of the disturbance, he let his feet lead him towards the source... which Nico felt inexplicably drawn to. As he tiptoed throughout the hallways, Nico found himself heading towards his training room - which happened to contain many sharp, pointy weapons that could be used against him. That wasn't a good sign.

But he kept going.

When he finally reached his destination, Nico silently unsheathed his sword and pushed the heavy obsidian door to reveal…

_WHAT?!_

He froze, sword clattering to the ground.

_No. Flipping. Way._

_What_ _was_ he _doing here?_

"Please don't panic," said the being inside. "I'm not here to hurt you, I promise."

Nico looked at Eros with the most deadpan expression a person could muster.

"Really!" The love god held his hands up innocently. "I came to give you some information. And advice, if you'll accept it."

Nico's look did not change. "Uh-huh. Right."

Eros rolled his eyes. "Look, I've come to talk to you about… well, you know - the _incident_ on Half-Blood Hill?"

Nico stiffened at the words, fear alighting in his eyes. In the blink of an eye, he'd pulled out a long serrated knife, demeanor quickly transforming to that of a cornered animal. Eros took a step back.

" _Calm down._ I just - I need to explain things." He let out a heaving sigh, fiddling with the feathers on one of his arrows. "I - well… the god who whipped you - that… that wasn't me. It was… a shapeshifting goddess, by the name of..."

He trailed off. After a strained silence, Nico finished for him, realizing who Eros meant. Dread settled in the pit of his stomach as he spoke the name.

"Mesperyian." Dear Hades. Eros _had_ to be kidding… right?

But the god only nodded, face deadly serious. "You've met her then."

With those words, the situation finally sank in. Nico slowly unfroze, robotically pocketing the knife and picking up his sword. His hands trembled as boiling anger ran through him. "For some reason," He murmured to himself, "I'm not surprised."

"Yes, your half-sister is quite the bloodthirsty little goddess." Eros replied, rolling his eyes. "But, fortunately, I do have good news. Along with shapeshifting, Mesperyian is capable of stealing small amounts of power from other gods -"

"And how," Nico interrupted, "Is that good news?"

"Let me _finish._ So, as I said, Mesperyian can steal small amounts of power _and_ infuse the godly magic into solid objects. That whip she used on you - it was filled with _my_ love magic."

"Uh-huh. Again, _how_ is that good news?!"

Eros looked at him as if he were stupid. "This is good news, because it means _I know how to_ heal _you._ "

Nico's eyes widened, and he resisted the urge to touch the angry red scars embedded in his back. Yet, as much as it felt like Tartarus, that searing pain _had_ slowly been forgotten as he'd adjusted to it; he rarely even felt it at all during combat. The adrenaline wiped it all away.

But now, the full force of that agony fell on him again, almost knocking him over. To have it relieved… well, even Elysium couldn't beat that offer.

"H-how?" He whispered.

Eros's expression didn't waver, but his eyes took on a softer light. Nico was entirely shocked at his next words, which were filled with a quiet kindness he didn't understand.

"Love, of course. When someone picks up the pieces of your shattered heart, a mark of hatred like that slowly becomes nothing but a simple scar. " A sad smile curled on the love god's lips. "At first, it may not seem likely... but someday, the pain will fade into only a distant memory. That is the cure for heartbreak; and so, that is the cure for you."

Nico looked down at his feet, not trusting himself to speak. He felt like he was in some sort of twisted Disney movie - the one without a happy ending. After all, who would love him? Even if the modern world accepted those with his… gender, who would want _him,_ the creepy, antisocial, son of _Hades?_

Eros seemed to read his thoughts, a slight smile tugging at his lips. "Oh, don't worry. Aphrodite is _quite_ invested in your love life - in fact, she's already found a match. Good luck."

With that, he vanished in a flash of light; in a flash of light; leaving a only single arrow behind.

Curious, Nico picked it up…

And the name inscribed on the tip made him blush a deep red.

* * *

Inside its sealed container, black wand shuddered. The half-soul of Tom Riddle was groaning again, bored out of his mind. Sure, the black poplar stick was more comfortable than his old home in the diary, but still. _There was nothing to do._

No impressionable little girls to corrupt and brainwash, no bold heroes to manipulate and lie to, no pizza, no nothing.

Just. Complete. Mind-numbing. Boredom.

Riddle wasn't even sure how _long_ it had been. For all he knew, it could have been _decades_ since the Chamber of Secrets incident, or only days. And frankly, that disorientation was quite frightening. He had absolutely no idea what would be waiting for him when he escaped his wooden prison.

But… as of now, Riddle also didn't care. He would literally give anything to get out.

Anything.

* * *

Will glared at Nico. "Have you been down here _all_ night?"

The half-Italian barely even looked up as he hacked another dummy into pieces. "Uh-huh."

Will couldn't believe this guy. Apparently, instead of _sleeping_ Christmas night - like any sane person - di Angelo would rather be down in the stuffy training room; sweating and delirious from sleep-deprivation while hacking Octavian dummies apart with sharp, pointy things.

Go figure.

Nico continued to practice his (admittedly terrifying) sword skills for a few more minutes, slashing and stabbing until his stuffed victims had completely fallen apart. He stood still for a moment, panting, then started to move onto the target practice for his knives. Seeing this, Will growled under his breath in exasperation and lunged forward, grabbing Nico's arm.

"Uh, no. That's enough. _You_ are coming with me to breakfast. Right. Now."

"Make me." The younger boy's voice was curt, laced with an undertone of emotion Will couldn't place.

A pang of hurt shot through him, but Will only grinned; hiding the irrational feeling. "Oh, come on, don't be like that! You've still got unopened Christmas presents from yesterday! Don't you wanna see them?"

This got Nico's attention. "What... C-Christmas presents? From… _who?_ "

"Camp Half-Blood, duh. A few from Camp Jupiter too. And - oh! You've got a big one from Hades." Will could almost feel the shock emanating from the shorter teen as he spoke, pure disbelief shining in Nico's dark eyes. Slight excitement laced the son of Hades's voice when he finally spoke.

"R-really?"

As an answer, Will tightened the grip on his arm and dragged Nico into the huge living room. In the center stood a large plastic evergreen covered in tinsel and silver ornaments, a multitude of boxes glittering in shiny wrapping paper lying underneath.

"Merry late Christmas." He whispered. Nico gaped.

But not at the tree.

A huge baby grand also stood in the middle of the room. The card attached to the side read:

_From: Hades._

_Merry Christmas, mio figlio._

_P.S. This is an actual piano, not a magic one; so you_ will _need to practice. Summon Beethoven, or Mozart to help you._

_P.P.S. But not Bach. Persephone doesn't like him… DON'T ASK._

"This is…" Nico struggled to speak. "Amazing."

Will chuckled. "From the look on your face, it's like you've never had Christmas before."

Nico went silent at that.

A flicker of confusion ran through Will before the realization hit him. And when it did…

He flipped out.

"NICO DI ANGELO! YOU'VE _NEVER_ CELEBRATED CHRISTMAS?!"

Nico shrugged. "I may have celebrated it once or twice in Italy, but the memories are… slow coming back. But other than that… well, it isn't much of a Christmas when you're out on the streets, freezing your butt off, is it?"

Will stared at him. "Why didn't you stay in the Underworld? Or go to a demigod camp?"

"I can only come here during the winter if my father allows me. Persephone doesn't enjoy my company. As for the Camps…" Nico shook his head, sighing. "To both Greek and Romans, a son of Hades showing up at this supposedly 'happy' time of year is always considered a 'bad omen'. I wouldn't've been welcome."

Will was seriously starting to doubt the guy's mental stability. "Are you _kidding_ me? You put some stupid ancient belief before your own _health_?!"

Nico frowned. "Well, when you say it _that_ way…"

"I can't believe you! You are the most… the most _self-destructive_ demigod on the planet!"

Nico's frown deepened into a scowl. "I'm not -"

"Don't you dare deny it, di Angelo. Doctor's Or -" Will began, but Nico quickly cut him off.

"Uh-uh. No. _Don't_ finish that sentence."

"- der's."

Nico glared at him balefully. Will stared right back.

A minute passed. Then two.

Then five.

Fifteen…

Half an hour later, the stubborn blonde finally huffed, reluctantly changing the subject. "Fine. Whatever. Let's see what your other presents are."

He had been wondering, during those thirty minutes, if he was pushing the son of Hades too hard; maybe even cracking the tentative friendship that they had slowly (and, on his part, painstakingly) formed. So Will stuffed down his pride, and reached for the first present.

His boring health lecture could wait.

* * *

The two weeks of winter break passed quickly, and Nico soon found himself back on the Hogwarts death train of boredom. (No, Hades didn't kidnap them again. Nico would've actually preferred that, really.) Will was slumped next to him, snoring blissfully.

He sighed, wishing _he_ could slip into Hypnos's realm so easily. Unfortunately, the Tartarus nightmares had started up again as soon as he'd left the underworld, and Nico wouldn't be able to sleep in such a public place without screaming bloody murder and drawing unwanted attention.

Dully, he flicked through the games on the new box (wasn't it called a... fone, or something?) that Leo had made him for Christmas. It was a nice present (and apparently the case made of basilisk venom monster-proofed it somehow) but... it _was_ pretty useless without any of that "why fly" stuff; as without the "inner net", there really wasn't very much to do.

(Seriously, if he had to play one more wretched game of "Subway Surfers"...)

Groaning and cursing the stupid tiny rectangular device under his breath, Nico turned it off and flung the thing aside... unaware it would one day save his life.

**A/N: I'm putting this at the end for a reason. That way, you people are more likely to read it.**

**This is a tutorial on how _not_ to be an idiot.**

**So, I got my first flames:**

**Matt** chapter 4 . Jan 1

**that wasn't necessary what is, is you watching everyone you know and love die slowly and painfully while learning you caused them that pain.**

**Matt** chapter 13 . Jan 4

**You're such a liar, you say you love to hate Umbitch when you actually love to hate Nico. I mean you making him suffer like crazy which means you hate him. So why don't you go and die like everyone wants you to your good for nothing loser!**

**Reaction?**

**BWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHA*hiccups* Hahahaha... My gods. Oh, Matt. Matt. My poor, deluded child. That is _not_ how you flame.**

**That's how you make a fool out of yourself.**

**For example:**

**"I mean you making him suffer like crazy which means you hate him." _Sure._ I wrote an entire 14 chapters about Nico because I hate him _so_ much. Of course.**

**Catch the sarcasm there?**

**But seriously, Matt, if you really hated my story this much, why did you keep reading it?**

**(And if you did it just to flame, then I offer my deepest condolences. Your life is even sadder than mine.)**

**callasandra10** chapter 7 . Dec 31, 2015

**this was good but then it got WAY to sick and sadistic both Harry Potter and Percy Jackson are aimed towards eleven year olds. For one Nico would've chewed Umbridge out for using blood quills. Not to mention where the Hades is Will!**

**1\. Percy Jackson is actually aimed for middle school students.**

**2\. I did rate the story T for a reason. You or Matt want fluffy, happy stuff - those are usually rated K or K+.**

**3\. Hazel already chewed out the entire ministry out for using blood quills.**

**4\. I have no idea what your last sentence means.**

**People, if you want to do better - write your own story.**

**P.S. I wasn't being sarcastic just now... Really, writing is super fun! Try it. That way, you always meet all of your expectations for a story.**

**P.P.S. Sorry if I came off as a bit rude in my explanations. I just like a good argument.**


	15. Peace, Shattered to Pieces

**Disclaimer: You get the point. I don't own.**

**A/N: Yay! Update. Now read.**

Mesperyian glowered down at the trembling Death Eaters cowering at her feet.

"I gave you one task." She whispered, her gravelly voice carrying promises of unimaginable violence. "One miserable task. And you failed."

"P-please," whimpered one of the younger recruits, "James and Lily - we were caught by surprise. We -"

"Silence!" Mesperyian slashed her hand forward, black shadows springing to life and slitting the man's throat. He immediately slumped to the floor; dead. "You failed, plain and simple. Now," She smiled, a deadly glint in her eyes, "I can't let that go unpunished, can I?" Not waiting for a reaction, the goddess stepped out, slamming the heavy dungeon doors closed behind her.

Mesperyian twitched her fingers.

The sudden symphony of screams was music to her ears.

* * *

Nico wasn't sure whether or not to laugh or cringe as Harry stormed out of Madam Puddifoot's shop, red as a tomato and streaming pink confetti behind him.

The guy really needed to work on his relationship skills.

It was Valentine's day today - a month after his winter break fiasco. Surprisingly, Harry's utter failure on his date with Cho had been the most interesting thing Nico had seen since the beginning of the new year. One might've thought he'd welcome the change after all the schist that the last year had put him through, but frankly - without Mesperyian and Voldemort ruining his life - Hogwarts had been seriously boring.

_Umbridge was a (censored), his possessed wand kept trying to eat him, monsters beat him into a pulp every day_ … same old, same old.

(Even manipulating the Mist into keeping the wizards from noticing Leo and Calypso's disappearance had been ridiculously easy with Hecate's help... - the wizards might've been superior to mortals, but even they were still just as gullible to their mistress's illusions as any other sentient being would be.)

So _nothing_ was happening, and that was what worried Nico most of all.

His instincts (and the three old ladies weaving socks in his nightmares) kept telling him that disaster was looming on the horizon. The only question was, then, how much would it cost? His life?

That would probably be the most merciful.

Nico unconsciously trailed after Harry, lost in his morbid imaginings. He didn't even notice where he was going until he nearly slammed into the doorframe of a pub in Hogsmeade called the "Three Broomsticks". Wonderful. More people.

Or in other words, social interaction.

Cursing, but with no other way to get out of the rain, he ducked inside and shook the wet hair out of his eyes, looking around. Various students and teachers from Hogwarts milled about, laughing and chatting; a few seventh years dumping butterbeer all over each other. Hagrid was sitting with Harry in a corner, morosely drinking from a large tankard. Nico saw that he had two fresh cuts on his face and several new bruises.

Well, if he was going to go looking for trouble today…

Squeezing through the cramped tables, he pulled up a chair beside them as Hagrid said, "Makes a diff'rence, havin' a decent family," he jerked his head towards Nico, drunkenly unsurprised at his arrival, "Me dad was decent. An' your mum an' dad were decent. If they'd lived, life woulda bin diff'rent, eh?"

Nico didn't feel like thinking about his dead family. That was a mental crisis locked away deep, deep within his mind, and going there never ended well. Scowling, he stayed silent.

"Yeah… I s'pose," said Harry cautiously, not yet noticing the dark teen sitting next to him.

Hagrid seemed to be in a very strange mood, as he continuing gloomily. "Family. Whatever yeh say, blood's important..."

And he wiped a trickle of it out of his eye.

Nico's senses went on high alert. That cut… it was radiating a sense of _wrongness_ , of something unnatural. He knew that feeling. It felt almost as if - as if a giant - or at least an extremely powerful monster - had done it.

"Hagrid," He growled, suspicion leaking into his voice, " _where_ are you getting all these injuries?"

Harry jumped, startled at his presence.

"What are you doing here?" He yelped, at the same time Hagrid said dismissively,

"Oh . . . tha's jus' normal bumps an' bruises, di Angelo. I got a rough job."

Nico ignored Harry. "But we've only studied Thestrals so far. They can't be that dangerous."

Hagrid frowned at him, draining his tankard and setting it back upon the table. He got to his feet, speaking curtly.

"Don' go poking yer nose in where it don' belong now, di Angelo. Heavens know what'll happen then."

And he lumbered out of the pub, disappearing into the torrential rain.

Perfect. More omens.

Shaking off the half-giant's warnings, Nico sighed with disappointment at the lack of excitement. He got up from his chair and made to leave the pub, resigning himself to another evening of absolute boredom.

Until…

"Oi, di Angelo!" Blaise Zabini from the Slytherin House grabbed his arm. With a devilish grin that was very much unlike him, the dark-skinned boy whispered a proposition into Nico's ear.

His mind unclear from all the boredom, Nico agreed.

* * *

Hundreds of miles away, Mesperyian also sighed in boredom as she watched the last of Voldemort's prisoners die screaming in her raging black flames. Ugh. She simply hated executions. They were so… so merciful. Really - why kill someone if you could do something worse? Like, oh… breaking their soul, maybe? Mesperyian thought it was a lot more fun, by any chance.

But convincing Voldemort otherwise was futile, and she would not go against his wishes, no matter what. That was what you were supposed to do when you loved someone, right? Her twin, Melinoe, had told her so. If she loved Tom Riddle, then she had to do whatever he told her to.

Whatever he told her to.

_I only hope he'll come to his senses and feel the same way, that bisexual fool_.

* * *

It was delicious.

Nico downed another cup of that heavenly stuff - the… the beer? At least that's what he thought they called it. He couldn't believe he'd passed up alcohol all those months… years? before. Sneaking into a muggle pub and partying into oblivion - now that had been one of Blaise's best ideas.

He grinned along with the other similarly intoxicated Slytherins around him. Valentine's day had been wonderful…

5…

Mesperyian glided down the dungeon hallways of Malfoy Manor, smiling to herself. So her lovely little brother had finally succumbed to her influence and gotten himself drunk, huh? Perfect. Absolutely perfect.

It was time to begin her experiment.

Mesperyian flung open the door to Cell 13.

4…

Hades growled in anger as he watched his son guzzle another drink. Oh, there'd be hell to pay for that… literally.

3...

Thanatos screamed in pain as Mesperyian wrenched him from the tiny cell and stuffed him into Nico di Angelo's head.

2…

Said demigod frowned in discomfort as an unfamiliar buzzing filled his pounding brain. He reached for a few more drinks.

1…

Mesperyian cackled with glee.

It was complete.

* * *

On Sunday, Nico decided that he sorely regretted every inch of his existence.

Sweat poured down his back as he dug another trench in the Field of Punishment - afraid to stop and rest for fear of his father's wrath. He knew he should be grateful - if not for his duties as a student at Hogwarts, he'd be here for two more weeks.

"Faster!" Shouted Alecto behind him, cracking her whip.

Nico flinched. He knew she wouldn't actually hit him, but still. His memories of whips were not… pleasant.

There were worse things on his mind, however, besides Mesperyian.

Such as -

_How am I going to explain my disappearance to Will? When he finds out what I did… Schist, schist, schist -_

Suffice it to say, Nico feared that happening even more than the whip.

A sharp stab of pain in his head brought him back to the present. Wincing, Nico shook himself, trying to expel the annoyance. Stupid hangover. Why did it have to hurt _so much?_

"Hurry up!" Alecto yelled again. She bared her pointed teeth.

Nico, being the smart person that he was, decided to continue digging.

* * *

Will lounged on the bleachers with the rest of his house besides the Quidditch match, steaming with anger. And it wasn't because of Gryffindor's absolute failure at the game; no, it was something much, much worse. Something… by the name of Nico di Angelo.

"You - did - _what?"_

Said something let out a pained moan beside him. "I was already punished for it, okay? No need to get so mad. Ow, my head..."

Will only intensified his glare. "That's what you get for drinking so much."

"And twelve hours of hard labor in the Fields of Punishment." Nico raised an eyebrow, putting into place a mask of cool indifference (to hide the fact that he was quaking inside). "Are you happy now?"

"Hmph." Will sighed, reluctantly satisfied. "Harsh, but you deserved it."

"I know." Nico winced as a stabbing pain lanced through his sore muscles. "But that doesn't mean -"

_Zing! THUMP._

He was cut off by these sounds coming from an unseen commotion on the Quidditch pitch. Frowning in annoyance, Nico began to stand… - and got pushed down when the crowd suddenly went wild (trying to run for their lives). The first years even started to scream, shrill cries echoing throughout the confusion.

_What the…_

"YO! Stop, wait! We weren't trying to kill you, we just wanted your attention!" A familiar voice called out over the din. "Stop! Calm down! Hey!"

_… ! You're kidding me, right? It can't be -_

Nico facepalmed. Of course. Only _she_ could beat Percy in creating such a riot.

"Oh, you've got my attention alright," he groaned, shaking his head, _"Thalia Grace."_

* * *

Thalia knew shooting those arrows had been a bad idea.

Still, there wasn't any time for negotiations. She had to get those mortals out of there now, before…

Before the werewolves attacked.

"PEOPLE!" She yelled, trying to stop the frenzy. "HEY!"

To no effect whatsoever. The crowd had only gotten even more panicked, shouting and trampling each other until they'd melded into one giant writhing mass of destruction. Greeeaaaat.

"I've got no choice then," Thalia muttered to herself, then called out to her new second-in-command, "Kyrie! Plan B! We take them by force!"

"Roger!"

The eighty or so Hunters of Artemis plunged into the crowd, kidnapping as many people as they could - men and boys included. Thalia followed suit, grabbing hold of multiple children and tossing them toward her wolves for them carry to safety. Frantically, she continued to tear through the horde of people, trying to save anyone within her reach.

But there were just too many…

And Lycaon's werewolves would be here very, very soon.

There was no time! Thalia felt her own panic rising. She reached for her supplies, desperate for something, anything that could help her -

"Hades, you've become an even bigger idiot than Percy, haven't you?" A voice suddenly sounded behind the alarmed Hunter, laced with a poisonous sarcasm. "This is just terrific."

Thalia's eyes widened. _She knew that voice._ But it couldn't - it couldn't possibly be… -

"Nico!" Called out a second voice. "What're you - hey, ouch!"

_Nico… ?!_

Whirling around, she beheld - in great horror - her damned cousin.

In other words, the most likely reason of the werewolves' appearance.

_Fan-tas-tic._

"You!" She growled at him. "I don't know what you're doing here, but you better come with me. Now."

Surprise flashed across Nico's face before being replaced with the usual emotionless mask. "What?"

_"I said -"_

"I know." The son of Hades snapped in irritation. "But why? What's happened?"

"Werewolves. Revenge for Lycaon. After you." Thalia ground out, glaring at him. "Now let's _go."_

"Oh. _Oh."_ Realization dawned in Nico's eyes as her words sunk in.

When he, Reyna, and Coach Hedge had been in Portugal on their Athena Parthenos quest, Lycaon and his werewolves had caught up with them - trying to either capture or make dinner out of the demigods/satyr (Nico never remembered which). Fortunately, with some quick thinking and a lot of luck, he'd been able to kill the werewolf king and escape.

But Lycaon's werewolf pack had been left alive.

And now they were out for his blood; most likely ripping apart anyone who stood in their way - including innocent wizards and witches.

Without another word, he turned and ran straight towards the Forbidden Forest - straight towards the werewolves; ignoring Thalia's cries of protest behind him. Nico couldn't let so many people get hurt because of him, no matter how annoying they were. Magic or not, mortals were to be protected.

Chiron had taught him that lesson the hard way.

(And there was that tiny fact of _Will_ also being among the crowd…)

He pounded through the underbrush, dread invading his every pore at the thought of confronting the vengeful werewolves. But if he didn't do it, then who would? The whole situation was Nico's fault anyway. Making the anyone else risk their lives for him would be unthinkable. He just hoped he could buy enough time for the Hunters to save everyone, and then run away himself afterwards. (Because really - he wasn't as stupid as Percy. Nico knew he couldn't defeat an entire pack of werewolves on his own.)

He shook his head, clearing away the useless thoughts. No time for that now. Nico needed a way to hinder the lycanthropes while simultaneously preventing a massacre on the wizards (and hopefully coming out alive himself, too). And for him to have even the tiniest sliver of a chance of doing that, he needed silver - the only metal in the earth or below it that could harm werewolves.

_But where…?_

_BZZZZZZZZ! BZZZZZZZZ!_

A loud vibrating sound suddenly emanated from his pocket. Nico growled in annoyance, pulling out his phone and silencing it. He'd forgotten he'd still had that thing. Urgh. Did someone really have to call him now? Seriously. He lifted his hand to throw Leo Valdez's damned creation into a shadow (to transport back to his room)...

When the answer hit him like a giant flaming hammer.

The _phone_.

Made by _Leo Valdez._

In other words, a phone that doubled as a miniature 3-D printer that printed out the actual material of the object as well as every tiny millimeter of its design - all in five seconds while also making an ice cream smoothie. (Hey, it was Leo after all.) The only real limit was the size.

Which, unfortunately, ruled out swords.

But _knives_ , on the other hand...

"Print." Nico gasped at the tiny device, switching the programming to "Utter Destruction Mode". "Object: Knife. Style: Point Blank. Material: Silver. Make around ten or fifteen. I need as many as I can get."

"Processing..." To Nico's surprise, his phone actually spoke back to him in a strange robotic voice. "Complete. Leo is awesome."

He would've rolled his eyes at any other time, but now Nico could only feel relief as an abundance of silver knives zapped into existence above his hands. Leo really was awesome.

And now, it was time for him to kill some werewolves.

Stowing his new weapons in the knife holders on the insides of his jacket, Nico continued forward, heart pounding like a ticking time bomb in his chest. Loud howls suddenly began to pierce the air, the lycanthropes narrowing in on his scent. Good. That was good. He could get this over with quicker then.

Nico paused behind a tree, and waited.

When the first werewolf burst into his face, it definitely did not go as Nico expected.

Not when Sirius Black was also riding the thing.

"Wha -" He began, knocking his head against the tree in surprise.

"Shhh! We're here to help you." Sirius put a finger to his lips, jumping to the ground. Then he turned to the werewolf. "Now, Remus Lupin - I know you don't like taking this form unless the full moon forces you to, but we really need your help. So, would you please be a werewolf today - for only for a few minutes?"

_Remus_ Lupin? _As in the non-human professor that Umbridge keeps mentioning? Wait - he's a_ werewolf?!

Nico could only stare as Sirius continued to calm the growling beast, slowly getting over his shock. (He would freak out later, now was not the time.) _O-kay_. Well, having a werewolf on his side _could_ prove advantageous, but…

Before he could even finish the thought, however, another werewolf flew at him through the the trees, snapping its teeth and growling.

"Die!" It screamed. "Die, Hades scum, for slaying our king! Die! Rrrauwgh!"

Yup. That was definitely one of Lycaon's.

Nico moved to draw a knife, but Remus Lupin skidded into his path and blocked him, instead killing the other lycanthrope himself with two swipes of his massive claw.

"Brilliant!" Sirius called out. "Thanks, Remy!"

Nico nodded at the werewolf. "Yeah. Thanks."

_Well, having some help could be useful after all… As long as Lupin doesn't get hurt -_

Then the rest of the pack fell upon them, and everything deteriorated into absolute Tartarus.

* * *

_SNAP! CRASH! RWAAAAAUUUUURWGH!_

Sounds reverberated through the forest as Nico twisted and dodged, Lycaon's werewolves always one step ahead of him. All rational thought demolished, he fought like an animal with only his instincts, sticking knives and strangling with shadow wherever he could - and still nearly overwhelmed everywhere he turned. Remus and Sirius were faring even worse, pushed up against a nearby wall of trees and stuck on complete defense.

How long had they been fighting…? Thirty minutes? An hour?

_Ha_. Nico rolled to a stop, pulling his bloody knives out of the monster dust. _No. More… Few. Minutes. Like._

Yes, he was definitely going to die.

But not on the ground.

Pushing himself up, Nico kept sluggishly swinging his knives - too exhausted for umbrakinesis now. His back hurt too, but at least adrenaline reduced it to a dull ache - not that the blood trickling down it wasn't annoying, though - that he could endure.

_CRACK_.

A werewolf clawed at his head, knocking Nico to the ground. It opened its large maw, savoring the moment as it bore down on his neck. And as he felt the disgusting saliva splatter onto his skin, he knew.

It was the end.

Nico closed his eyes, bracing himself. _Sorry, Will. I only wanted to protect -_

_WHOOOSH._

Suddenly, the werewolves were knocked back. Instead of feeling his throat ripped out as he'd been expecting, the pain in Nico's back grew into a scorching crescendo - almost worse than Mesperyian's whipping the summer before.

But it wasn't old scars causing Nico the pain.

When he opened his eyes, he saw that the werewolves had been blown away into various trees…

By the giant black feathery wings sprouting from his back.

Wings that belonged on Thanatos.

**A/N: Cliffhanger! I am truly evil...**

**Jason: I hate you. Where is the Solangelo?!**

**Fourth wall: Oh, come on! I thought I could finally rest in peace!**

**Everyone else: Screw you.**


	16. Hearing Voices

**A/N: Yes, I'm back. Gods, it's been three weeks... I hate myself.**

**Nico: You forgot a disclaimer!**

**Disclaimer: Nope. I'm going on strike. Goodbye.**

**Me: DON'T YOU DARE -**

**Disclaimer: *ducks knife* Eep! Fine, fine, I don't own this. There. Bye!**

**Me: I hate you too.**

_In his dreams, Nico stood in a dirty cell. Beside him crouched Mesperyian, thankfully unaware of his presence in the darkness. She seemed to be absolutely ecstatic, humming under her breath as she sharpened some knives._

" _Time to begin the hunt!" The goddess rasped to herself. "Yes, yes! We will have fun, you and I." Nico wasn't sure what she meant, but he had a very, very bad feeling…_

_The scene shifted._

_Now he lounged on a comfortable couch in a white office. People milled about around him, carrying devices varying from chainsaws to lawn mowers to scissors. He himself carried a sleek black iPad._

" _Well?"_

_Nico jumped, only just noticing that one of these people were sitting across from him, tapping his foot impatiently._

" _What?" He replied, but it wasn't Nico's voice that came out. This voice was deeper and richer - the voice of Thanatos._

" _Are you just going to leave all this work to me again? You've been missing for four months, you know." At a closer glance, Nico realized that the person speaking was Anubis, Egyptian god of funerals. Wait. What was_ he _doing here?_

_His own mouth answered that for him. "Well, I_ apologize _for being captured and tortured by a disfigured psycho girl. That was_ definitely _part of my plan when I was told to guard Eros. Besides, you've taken over for me as boss before, during the Giant War. This time shouldn't be any different."_

" _That's the_ point," _grumbled Anubis. "It_ isn't _any different - all I can do is keep everyone from killing each other. No one is reaping souls, and no mortals are dying. I don't control death like you do."_

_Thanatos-with-Nico-hitchhiking-in-his-head, glared. "Shouldn't you Egyptians have someone who does this job too? Why must you rely on Greeks for everything?"_

" _We might've, at one point… but I can't really remember. After you appeared, he kind of faded away." Anubis rubbed his temples. "But that's not the point. Are you or are you not going to resume control over these overly irritating, suicidal reapers? Because I can't stand another minute here."_

"No." _Thanatos sighed with a hint of annoyance. "I already told you, most of my essence has been forcibly stuffed inside a demigod - like you and the magician Walt. Only difference is, I can't leave my host. So until Nico di Angelo can be taught to command the entire system of grim reapers…"_

" _I'm stuck here babysitting." Anubis finished with a scowl. "...Oh, fine - if I must. But still, without death -"_

" _Don't worry… I'll come back soon - either when I have figured out how to separate the two of us, or when I have taught Nico enough to be an adequate personification of Death." Thanatos said, using the most reassuring tone he could muster._ "Di immortales. _I'm sure that brat Mesperyian planned this somehow… But I can't figure out her plans. Why would she want to combine the two of us in such a fashion? What good would that do her? What good would that do any of us?"_

" _I have no idea." Anubis replied, trying to put up a facade of nonchalance. "But it won't do you any good to ponder this stuff either. Besides, you're mostly free now, at least. So hurry up and train Nico, or whatever."_

" _Will do." Thanatos muttered with no hint of any enthusiasm whatsoever. "See you, Anubis."_

_The vision went pitch black._

\- Two hours (or what felt like it) later. -

" _So." A voice spoke out of nowhere, startling Nico out of his dozing. (Can one doze in dreams?)_

" _Uh…"_ _He wasn't sure how to reply. Especially not when said voice sounded suspiciously similar to Aphrodite's._

_A sigh. "How very eloquent, son of Hades. Honestly, you're only making it harder and harder for me to help you."_

" _H-help me…?"_

" _Yes, you dirty underworld spawn." The goddess (for Nico was sure it was some sort of goddess) snapped. "Oh, look at the time," - although there was no possible way to tell time in the oppressing blackness - "I can't stay much longer. Word of advice… The pretty boy in your wand - yeah,_ that one _. Use him. He's important. Right, bye!"_

What. _Was all Nico could think, but the strange presence was already gone._

_Sadly for him, it would be worse when he woke up…_

* * *

"Yes, we know you saved us from the werewolves and all," the pink lady smiled condescendingly at Thalia, her sickly sweet expression portraying only blatant disgust, "but we simply can _not_ allow a group of feral savages live in Hogwarts's forest. It wouldn't be safe for the students, you see."

"Well then, us 'feral savages' won't ask for your permission." Thalia growled. "We're staying, period."

She and her most trusted hunters stood in the Great Hall, silver arrows nocked threateningly at the wizard teachers. Truthfully, she didn't want to do this any more than they did, but Artemis had ordered her to stay… - most likely to keep an eye on her depressingly problematic little cousin. That _was_ a very good reason to remain at this insane school of magical mortals, Thalia had to admit.

"Now, now," started a short little professor called… Flit-stick? "You can't -"

"Oh, yes we can." Thalia raised a challenging eyebrow. "Just watch us."

With that, she turned and headed straight back towards the Hunters' campsite in the Forbidden Forest, the rest of her inner circle on her heels. Kyrie paused at the threshold of the Hall, a bored expression on her face.

"By the way, if any male dares to intrude upon our territory, we will castrate him and put him on a spit to feed to our wolves. Understand?"

The professors nodded meekly.

"But girls are welcome any time. Except for the gross pink one. She comes within a twenty meter radius of us, she dies."

And Thalia's Second left without another sound.

* * *

…

_Wonderful. I'm part of Thanatos now._

_**You don't sound very enthusiastic.** _

_(… Great, he can hear my thoughts too.)_

_And why would I be? You're in my freaking head! How is it even possible?_

_**You've met the Egyptians before. You, of all people, should know how it's possible.** _

_Uh, yeah, but you're a_ Greek _deity. How can_ you _merge with a mortal?_

_**Your demented big sister likes performing strange experiments. How am I to know how she figured this out?** _

… _Point taken. But I can't believe you and Anubis aren't doing more to stop her. Mesperyian will -_

_**(So you heard that conversation, didn't you?)** _

_**Well, I don't care. I've had enough of that goddess and her torture. My only goal now is either to find a way to separate from you, or forcibly train you to be Death. Neither seem very appealing as of this moment.** _

_You can't separate from me. I've already sensed Hades try about a thousand methods in doing this, and nothing's worked. And nor do I want to be Death, so leave me alone._

_**No. You don't understand Nico - without Death, the world will be destroyed. Just look at the Giant War. Besides, you were already supposed to take over a few of my duties while I was missing.** _

_Oh… I forgot about that. Whatever._

…

_**How does Hades**_ **ever** _**put up with you? Irresponsible, lazy… *incoherent grumbling*.**_

_Shut it._

Unwilling to continue his painful mental conversation, Nico slowly opened his eyes, squinting at the bright white walls around him.

It seemed he was in the infirmary. Yet again.

"Di Angelo! You're awake!" A voice (outside of his head, thankfully) chirped. Surprisingly, Nico found it belonged to Draco Malfoy.

"D-Draco?"

"You remember me!" The blonde smirked.

Nico scoffed. "Of course I do, _idiota._ Just because I was unconscious doesn't mean I also contracted amnesia."

"...whatever. Anyway -"

"Nico!" A cheerful voice rang from across the room. Yet another (strange) blonde soon crowded Nico's bed. He… was not as polite as Malfoy.

A crushing hug enveloped Nico in the most painful way possible, squeezing out whatever small amount of air he was carrying in his lungs. His back also began to ache, and Nico suddenly realized that his acquiring wings during his fight with the werewolves _hadn't_ been part of his imagination.

_Terrific. How am I supposed to stay undercover_ now?

_**I don't know. That's for you to figure out.** _

_I told you to shut up!_

Nico slammed Thanatos back into his mental box, and glared at Will, who had finally let go. "Are you _trying_ to smother me to death?"

"Sorry." He grinned sheepishly, then frowned. "But you, Nico di Angelo, are the biggest insane idiot in the history of insane idiots. _What the actual Hades were you thinking?!_ The werewolves would have killed you, or worse, if those weird shadows hadn't sucked them away first."

_Weird… shadows?_

_**It was probably Mesperyian. The lycanthropes must've been working with her to awaken my powers inside you.** _

_...Thanks. Now get back into your box._

_**Ungrateful brat.** _

Nico growled under his breath.

Draco stepped back. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing." Nico forced a smile. "Just a little sore."

Will gave him a look.

_I'll tell you later._ Nico mouthed, jerking his chin at Draco. _When he isn't here._

Will's glare intensified, but he nodded. _Fine._

" _Anyway,"_ Draco spoke up, clearly disgruntled at their silent exchange (most likely concerning him), "Umbridge sent me here to update you on the news. You missed her new educational decree - 'any student found in possession of the magazine The Quibbler will be expelled'." Apparently, Potter's been spreading his silly propaganda again."

Nico scowled. "Propaganda? What propaganda?"

"The stories about You-Know-Who, of course!" Draco sneered. "He wants everyone to believe that _he's_ back, just so he can play hero like the golden boy that he is. It's disgusting."

At first, all Nico could register was a spark of burning rage. No matter how much nicer Draco had become towards him, the boy was still as bigoted and jealous as the rest of the Slytherin House - or at least the majority, anyway. But as he studied the young Malfoy closer, he could tell that something was bothering said Slytherin - and not necessarily a good thing. Nico's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

_**Paranoid, much?** _

_SHUT UP!_

"Voldy _is_ back, Draco, and you know it." He blocked out Thanatos's indignant muttering and glared at the "prince of snakes", as the Golden Trio had dubbed him. The name seemed more fitting now than ever. "Potter may be a paranoid… 'git', as you like to call him, but he's not a liar. The Ministry, however, is."

Draco stared at him for a moment, slightly shocked. Then his face fell into something disturbingly similar to Nico's own blank mask when he hid unwanted feelings. "Oh, so you're siding with _those_ lunatics, then." He sniffed. "Fine. I should've known you were no better, _Gryffindor._ Traitor to the Slytherin House. Don't expect us to protect you any longer."

With that, he turned on his heel and stalked out the door.

After around ten minutes, Nico finally broke the silence.

"Well. Very dramatic. That could've gone better."

Will snorted. "You think?"

"..."

"..."

"Eh. Whatever." Nico shrugged. He'd never liked Draco too much anyway. "So… after the whole shadows thing -"

Will broke him off, listing: "You got wings, Hecate showed up and mist-magicked a bunch of stuff (including your wings), then she turned into Trivia and dragged her son and his werewolf off somewhere; the wizards showed up, forced the two of us to come here (they have 'questions', by the way); students were sent to Great Hall to spend the night, et cetera, et cetera. Oh, and Thalia's moving in, by the way."

Nico stared at him. " _What?"_

Will rolled his eyes and began repeating:

"You got wings, Hec -"

"No, no!" Nico growled in annoyance. "I _mean,_ Thalia's doing _what?!"_

"Moving in. Apparently she wants to 'keep an eye on her depressingly problematic little cousin', or something. The rest of the Hunters are camping in the forest, but Thalia and her second - Kylee, or something? - have decided to stay in the Slytherin dorms with you."

"...Should I be surprised?"

Will only shrugged. "I don't know. I don't know Thalia as well as you do. But she did want you to come see her when you woke up. I think she has some news - important, by the looks of it - so you'd better hurry."

Nico sighed, and sat up. "Oh? Where is she?"

"Still in the Forbidden Forest setting up camp. You -" Will looked as if his next words pained him. "You should shadow travel, I guess. It's best not for any professors to see you on your way out."

"Okay, then." Said Nico, slightly amused at Will's constipated expression. "I will."

He lay back on the bed and sank into his shadow, quietly disappearing into its familiar darkness.

And reappeared ten feet above the ground next to the Forbidden Forest.

_Thump._

"Ow." Nico groaned, sharp, stabbing pains lancing through his crushed wings. "Guess I miscalculated then."

_**My, my. You'll have to do better than that to become Death himself.** _

_I don't_ want _to be 'Death himself'. That's the_ point.

_**Whatever you say, my short little host. Whatever you say.** _

_My height has nothing to do with this. Shut up._

He picked himself off the ground and continued forward, heading into the woods. As he stepped into the dark undergrowth, someone called his name.

"Hey! Di Angelo! Oi!" The 'golden boy', Harry Potter, was running towards him, a frantic look on his face. "You can't go in there!"

Thanatos interrupted his mind again before Nico could reply.

_**Why does he have two souls? That's… really not normal.** _

_Obviously._ Nico grumbled. _The other soul is Voldemort - a Horcrux (as the wizards call it), like the one in my wand._

_**A hor… crux, eh? Never knew you could make a human one.** _

_Riddle didn't either. I think Harry was an accident._

_**How messy.** _

"HEY! HELLO?!" The shorter and skinnier version of Percy Jackson now stood next to him, waving a hand in front of his face. "Did you even hear anything of what I just said? Hello?"

Nico snapped out of his mind, jumping. "S-sorry. I spaced out. What were you saying?"

Harry glared suspiciously, obviously annoyed. "Why are you going into the Forbidden Forest? You do know there's an insane pack of girls who will, quote unquote, 'castrate you and put you on a spit to feed to the wolves', if you go in there, right?"

"Is that what she threatened you guys with?" Nico mused. "Heh. Interesting. Well, I'm pretty sure I'll be fine. I _am_ her cousin, after all."

Harry stared at him for a moment. "W-what? That - that crazy girl with the werewolves is your _cousin?"_

"Well, yeah. Sort of."

Harry continued staring in disbelief. " _And_ there's a rumor _you_ fought the werewolves too. Without dying." He muttered to himself, shaking his head. "Gah. Who _are_ you, Nico di Angelo?"

"I sometimes wonder that too." Leaving the other boy behind, Nico turned and strode off into the dark woods.

He headed into a shadow, concentrating harder this time. Silently, he melted away and flew through the icy darkness, quickly dropping out in a camp full of silvery tents. Dozens of young girls - ranging from only children to those in their early teens - milled about, making preparations for something... - dinner? At least that's what the charred mess looked like… Before he was tempted to investigate closer, however, the nearest Hunter glared at him and pointed to a large white tent in the middle.

"Thalia's in there. Don't wander around."

Nodding his thanks, Nico turned his attention away from the… food, and stepped inside the tent he'd been directed to.

"Thalia?"

"Mm?" The most honorable and respected Lieutenant of Artemis turned around, sucking a pink lollipop. "Oh, hey Nico."

He shifted awkwardly at the entrance, unsure of whether or not to go inside. "So - uh, Will said you had news?"

Thalia grinned, jumping up from her perch on the fluffy cushions that piled all over the dirt floor. "Oh, yeah! Come inside, you'll want to sit down for this." She dragged him in, handing him a cup of hot chocolate, which Nico took gratefully. Hey, he knew how good the Hunters' hot chocolate was.

"You're… in a good mood today."

Thalia said nothing, only pushing him onto a pillow, and continuing to smile that unnerving grin.

"Um… Thalia? You okay? You're not acting like yourself."

"Che. She's on a sugar high. It'll probably take hours for her to be normal again. Damn that Percy Jackson…" An unfamiliar voice spoke from one of the shadowy corners of the tent. An Asian girl stepped into view, tossing her short black hair - which was more a chaotic mess of purple and red highlights than black. Nico quickly recognized her as Thalia's second, Kyrie. (Or - Kylee? Will hadn't been very clear on that.)

"Percy? What does Percy have to do with this?" He asked.

"Everything." Muttered Kyrie. "He's the one who sent her all those cursed lollipops."

"Cursed… lollipops?"

"A practical joke. Anyone who consumes them will act like… well, her." Kyrie gestured to Thalia, who was now lying on the ground, quietly giggling to herself. "Damn him. Damn him to Hades. And, that's not all of it either."

"Nope!" Thalia chirped. "Tell him the best part! Tell him, tell him!"

Kyrie sighed and gritted her teeth, looking almost exactly like an exasperated parent. "Percy (censored) Jackson is now… engaged to Annabeth Chase. Full video on YouTube."

Nico choked on his hot chocolate. " _W-what?!"_

Kyrie glared. "Engaged. You heard me."

There was complete, utter silence.

Okay. First of all, Nico thought to himself in a wild panic, weren't they _way_ too young? And second…

_What the heck is this 'You-Tube'?_

**A/N: Totally 1940s. Cheheheh. I wonder what Thanatos thinks. (Do gods watch YouTube?) So, anyway - what do you think?**

**\- And yes, the first part was a blatant Black Butler reference. Thanatos can't collect the worlds' (yes, plural) souls all by himself, now can he?**

**\- Yes, the crap with Riddle's soul will be cleared up soon. Be patient.**

**\- Yes, Thanatos shares a head with Nico. Why not?**

**\- Yes, Mesperyian is up to something.**

**\- Yes, Draco is a jerk.**

**\- Yes, the Hunters are awesome.**

**\- No, I will not tell you the contents of the YouTube video, or how it even came to be on YouTube. That is a oneshot for another time.**

**Please review! (I'll write faster!)**


	17. Brutal Training

**Disclaimer: Me not own. Apologies, my dear children.**

**Yeah, I really am sorry for the wait. Actually, I've been writing a separate story for FictionPress called "Track on Crack"*, so... this update is even later. But it's here _now -_ so that counts for something right?**

* * *

"I will _kill_ him." Thalia growled. "I WILL KILL HIM!"

"Uh-huh," Kyrie said, completely unperturbed at the sight of her infuriated superior. "We know. You've only said so about a million times."

"He made me act like a fool in front of Nico! Nico, of all people!" Thalia ranted. "Then he goes and gets engaged to my little sister! At _seventeen!_ (Censored) you, Perseus Jackson!"

"Mm-hmm." Kyrie began filing her nails with a piece of firewood. "Done yet?"

Chloe, a ten-year-old new recruit, frowned. "But Thalia, I thought you were happy about the engagement. You seemed happy about it earlier."

"That was because of those gods-damned lollipops!" Thalia roared. Chloe shrank back a bit. "Percy sent them so I _wouldn't_ kill him right away!"

"...Oh."

"Hey," Kyrie muttered sullenly, tossing her firewood nail file away, "It was worse for us. The head cook got messed up from the lollipops too, so all _we_ had to eat was charcoal-flavored rabbit. At least _you_ got to skip dinner in your state."

"Tch. Details, details." Thalia waved a hand.

"All those Hunters sick from food poisoning wouldn't necessarily agree."

Their lieutenant opened her mouth, trying to think of a suitable comeback, but when no sound came out, she huffed and mumbled a few incoherent words; burying her face in her arms. After a moment of pondering, she suddenly growled, deciding to be angry and threw a few hunting knives in the direction of her second. Chloe looked alarmed.

Kyrie on the other hand…

"Yeah, yeah whatever." She smirked, deftly dodging said knives and grabbing Thalia's arm. "Quit moping and come on, we got a wizard school to go to."

They left, Thalia still at boiling point and Kyrie oblivious as usual.

Chloe slowly shook her head at their retreating figures, eyes wide.

"They're crazy."

* * *

_**Get up.** _

_No… tired._

_**Get. Up.** _

_Ge' outta m'head…_

_**GET UP!** _

A blinding pain stabbed Nico between the eyes as he stubbornly fought to stay asleep. It grew steadily into a screaming crescendo, buzzing like a million bees were stinging that exact spot on his forehead.

_**Get**_ **up,** _**you lazy imbecile.**_

_Ow! Seriously?!_

Nico sat up, head throbbing but fully awake. Swearing, he checked the time on the clock on the Slytherin dorm rooms.

Five a.m.

_WHY THE (censored) HADES ARE YOU WAKING ME UP AT (censored) FIVE IN THE MORNING?!_

_**To train you. I did mention that I would do this, you know.** _

_..._

_WELL, (censored) YOU, I'M NOT! GOODNIGHT._

Nico began to lay back into bed when a sensation like a slashing knife ripped across his chest.

"Ow! What the f -"

_**I'm not a patient teacher. Get up.** _

_(Censored) you -_

Another flash of pain.

_**I**_ **told** _**you, get up.**_

Cautiously, Nico sat up again, skin burning in a toxic mixture of anger and agony. "I hate you so much." He muttered under his breath.

_**I know. Now get moving.** _

After a little more… persuasion, Nico finally got dressed and ready for - whatever Thanatos was going to do to him. Silently (though he was cursing the wretched death god in every language he could think of in their shared mind) Nico slipped his sword into its sheath and scooped up a handful of knives, before slipping out of the Slytherin common room.

_Now, what?_ He thought resignedly, prior resistance forgotten.

_**Ha.**_ Thanatos gloated. _**I knew you would listen, whether you liked it or not.**_

_Yeah, whatever, you can brag later. Just tell me what to do._

_**Hmph... Go to the Forbidden Forest - the place where I first awakened. Your powers will be strongest there, I think.** _

_You think?_

_**Just do it!** _

Wincing at the sudden headache, Nico did as he was told, shadow traveling into the clearing where he last fought the werewolves. Besides a few patches of dried blood and feathers, the place looked like there had never been a hopeless fight to the death upon its blank expanse. Nico stared for a moment at the rustling grass, unsure of what to do.

_Okay…_

_**Open your wings.**_ Thanatos ordered abruptly.

_W-what? But I don't know how…_

_**Figure it out. Or else -** _

The feeling of being sliced by a knife returned, even stronger than before. Nico choked, his knees buckling. Despite this, the searing pain only increased and soon, he had difficulty breathing. His thoughts ran wild, ice cold panic shooting through his nervous system.

_THANATOS! Stop, stop,_ stop - _I get it! Please!_

The seizures came to an abrupt halt.

_**Then do as I say.** _

… _You're a horrible teacher._

_**At least I'm effective. Now open your wings.** _

Nico struggled to obey, back straining to move muscles that had never even been there before. At first, barely any progress was made, the wings not even trembling in the slightest; to which Thanatos punished him with a few more seizures _(aaand_ to which he then followed with some _very_ colorful language). But as Nico continued to concentrate, the mist coating his back slowly fell away as if it were a breaking shell, and his wings snapped open; sending gusts of wind swirling throughout the trees.

_**Finally. I thought that would take forever.** _

_You're lucky I was able to do so at all after so many of your stupid 'encouragements', jerk._

_**Shut up. I am your master now, so you**_ **will** _ **do whatever I say, without complaining. This**_ **is** _**imperative to your health as well as mine. You know, if you're not careful, your own powers could overwhelm and even kill you, enhanced as they are now. Without training they most certainly will.**_

_(WHY THE HADES DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THIS BEFORE?!)_

… _Then, if that's the truth; fine - I'll let you train me. But what does not complaining have anything to do with it?_

_**It doesn't. I just think it's annoying. Besides, complaining will be detrimental to you as well, since I might do this -** _

A jerk, like a million terrible fishhooks embedding in his skin, flared in his chest.

_**Or this -** _

Nico's legs spasmed and collapsed, twitching uselessly.

_**\- when I am annoyed.** _

Instead of crying out, though, he had the hysterical urge to laugh. Three guesses where Thanatos learned all these _extremely_ creative tortures.

(Yep. You guessed it, dear reader mine. It was their resident psycho-maniac homicidal freak, Mesperyian. Seriously, that goddess has some _problems.)_

_Yes, sir._ Nico thought bitterly. _Whatever you say, sir. Please stop acting like a creepy male version of my sister, sir._

_**(...You're mocking me, aren't you.)** _

_**As I said, no complaining.** _

…

_**No more comments? Good. Now, I want you to use those stolen wings of yours and fly.** _

_...Say what?_

_**Are you really that dense? You need to learn to use your wings. And wings. Are. For. Flying. So do it.** _

_You're kidding me._

_**I'm perfectly serious. Learn how to fly, or else…** _

He didn't need to finish that sentence.

Nico quickly twisted his shoulder blades in an attempt to make the wings flap; yet that only made them jerk in strange motions that most definitely did _not_ look like flapping, nor any productive movement of any kind. He tried harder, trembling and shaking, but seemed to make it even worse.

_**Move your** _ **wings,** _**not your back. They're a part of your body now too. Utilize the muscles there, like this.** _

Thanatos took control for a moment, Nico reluctantly letting him into his mind.

_Don't you dare try to_ keep _control, hear me?_

_**Wouldn't dream of it.**_ Chuckled an amused voice.

He felt his body crouch and leap with experienced movements, wings silently rising and taking flight. Before he knew it, Nico was zooming through the night sky - a place he'd sworn never to go again after his mother was murdered. Then again, he'd already broken that promise once before on the Argo II, so this didn't affect him _too_ much emotionally; though he still feared Zeus might come down and blast him to bits if he wasn't careful… A sharp twinge on his cheek, like a slap; brought him back to reality.

Curse his ADHD.

_**Don't worry about**_ **Zeus.** Thanatos grumbled in annoyance. _**As of now,**_ **I'm** _ **the biggest threat to you.**_

_What are you -_

Thanatos relinquished his control.

"WAAAH!" Nico flailed his arms, not expecting the sudden retreat of godly presence in his body. "Crap - crap - how do I -"

He tried in vain to gain control of Thanatos's massive wings, to no avail. Roaring wind rushed past his ears, and he could feel himself falling down, down, down… He hit a tree branch, rough bark tearing open both shirt and skin before breaking and letting him drop down to the next one.

_C-C-CRACK._

Drop. Nico choked back a scream.

_C-C-CRACK._

Drop. A few tears slid down his face. Yet he still bit his lip, years of conditioning wrought by his fearsome father irrationally keeping him from making a noise.

_C-C-CRACK._

Drop. Unable to help it, Nico let loose a few swears.

The process continued, Thanatos letting him crash down through the thick wooden layers of branches and thorns, until -

_THUMP._

He screamed when he hit the ground, unsure why he was still alive, but hating it anyway. The sight of bone poking out of various places and blood seeping into the dirt below didn't help either. He sighed as he felt his vision slowly darken. So this was it. The death god's motive _had_ been to get him killed after all. That bastard…

_Snick. Schloomp. Click._

Nico yelped at the sudden feeling of his broken bones snapping back together and healing themselves, ripped open skin knitting together into faint scars. His vision cleared, slightly tinted red from the Thanatos's painful method of healing (as it _was_ without anesthetic or anything to cushion him whatsoever), but clear nonetheless.  
So then, he realized, the god of Death _wasn't_ trying to kill him after all. Well - that didn't really come as _too_ much of a relief…

_**Stand up.**_ Said god sounded in his head. _**We're going to do this over and over again until you get it.**_

_WHAT?! But I -_

_**No complaining. Do it.** _

The rest of the night soon blurred into a ghastly nightmare Nico would never, ever forget.

Over and over, Thanatos lifted him up in flight and dropped him into the forest, hundreds of feet below. Over and over, he acquired fatal injuries - only to have his body healed again and ready for more of the brutal torture. Yes, he did end up learning how to fly eventually, but Nico had quickly realized that that hadn't been Thanatos's real plan; no, the true reason why he was being forced to endure this was to build up his pain tolerance.

Something that made him wonder - exactly _what_ kind of training was ahead of him that made it all necessary?

* * *

_Mesperyian first saw him when he was only four._

_He was beautiful, even in childhood, that boy Tom. A shimmering vitality surrounded him, untouched by the years of cruel hardships raining down upon him from the Fates. His own brutal personality only made him even more appealing to a goddess like Mesperyian._

_Yes, she wanted him._

_Not_ now, _of course. Though she was sadistic and insane, and thoroughly messed up, Mesperyian was_ not _a pedophile. But twenty years from now…_

_Well, there was no accounting for her actions then._

_But, at present, she could only watch from a distance. Waiting._

_Mesperyian sighed. Well, the_ least _she could do was make sure no one else got him…_

_And that meant_ no one.

* * *

_Utter, agonizing, all-consuming hatred. Burning her, stabbing her, shooting her in places she was weakest. Such were Mesperyian's feelings towards that (censored) half-blood brother of hers. That brother who'd stolen Tom Riddle's heart._

_Something she'd vowed to never, ever let_ anyone _do._

But… _Mesperyian wasn't out of ideas - yet._

_A wicked smile grew across her face as she headed towards Hades's palace._

_Oh no, not at all._

* * *

_Screams. Ear-splitting screams pierced the air, hurting and yet also relieving Mesperyian at the same time. Tom Riddle was doing it. He was splitting his soul, becoming immortal - like her._

_It was absolutely delightful._

_Now, she could keep him_ forever. _Yes, he would age, still - but what matter was that? He was_ hers. _This only solidified that belief._

_Especially after she'd manipulated Hades into throwing that (censored) brother of hers to the mercy of the Lotus Eaters._

* * *

_Mesperyian held out her hand a little longer, corrupting Riddle's mind a little bit more. Though,_ she _wouldn't necessarily call it a_ corruption - _more a… questionable improvement? Yes, that sounded about right. Mesperyian needed Riddle's transformation into Voldemort to be as easy as possible - after all, she was the one causing it._

_The goddess watched in fascination as a once sane mind filled with the sweet, sharp blackness of insanity - beautiful seeds of genius planted in the most fertile soil. With this, Riddle would be perfect. With this, he would be complete._

_With this, he would finally become hers._

_For the rest of_ eternity.

* * *

Voldemort sighed as he contemplated the many situations before him.

Mesperyian had begun to terrify his Death Eaters _again,_ even driving some into nervous breakdowns. (Death Eaters most certainly did _not_ have nervous breakdowns.) He'd ask her to stop, of course; if not for the fact that Mesperyian wasn't actively _doing_ anything to frighten anyone - the goddess didn't _have_ to.

She was just that scary.

He sighed again. Goddess. Who knew there were such things? True, Voldemort should've already done some research on them; to be prepared and the like, but honestly. He was just too tired. The pseudo-immortal didn't dare show it, of course, but being the ultra-evil "Dark Lord" was some _serious_ hard work.

Did the rest of wizarding world care? No.

They thought he was still dead.

Voldemort ground his teeth as he pondered that _Crucio-_ deserving fact. Obviously, _he'd_ wanted to attack the Muggles as soon as he rose; but Mesperyian, after seeking him out and offering her services to him, had convinced Voldemort stay hiding. She'd told him to wait, to acquire the prophecy from the Department of Mysteries with trickery, not force. To use that dratted Potter boy when the time was right.

And meanwhile, all he could do was twiddle his thumbs and wait.

Not that the dark wizard _wasn't_ grateful to his supernatural servant; quite the opposite in fact - after all, she _had_ been the one to return him to his former glory - to the kind of strength Voldemort had had before he fell to Potter. And yes, also physically too - complete with handsome face and everything.

Apparently, Mesperyian hadn't wanted to date a monster.

Voldemort rolled his eyes.

He did know of her feelings for him. Voldemort wasn't sure what to think of it, really - she _was_ moderately nice (in his mind) and quite an asset to his plans… but - but -

He stifled yet _another_ sigh as the answer came to him. It was a very annoying answer.

Nico. Di. Angelo.

So many years and _still_ the boy would not leave his mind. A childish crush at first, but of which had slowly grown into something stronger over the years, more powerful. More destructive. If those wretched Muggles found out about it in _his_ time period, both he and Nico would have been marked as crazy and unclean, and sent to a mental asylum for the rest of their lives.

In Voldemort's position at present, the consequences could be much, much worse.

But, he assured himself as he waved the thought off, Nico was most likely dead today - or, at the very least; a seventy-year-old man. His past would never be able to catch him, not now.

No -

Not _ever._ Tom Riddle reminded himself. _Not ever._

* * *

Kyrie grimaced as she watched the sky. Venus was… unnaturally bright that night. _Too_ unnaturally bright.

Never a good sign.

But then, it had nothing to do with _her,_ of course. _She_ was a Hunter. Venus didn't apply to them - Artemis made sure of that. No one would ever have her, and she would have no one, because of that sacred oath. _(And…_ Kyrie was also straight. So - dating really was not an option.)

And yet if that were true, why then, would the _Hunter_ dream of an evil, plotting, but still devastatingly handsome, _man_ that night?

* * *

**A/N: Yeah, Thanatos _might_ be a little more... harsh than you expected, but honestly - we know so little about his personality from the books/wiki, that almost anything is possible. Besides, anyone who's stayed with Mesperyian that long is bound to have some side effects. And there _is_ an ulterior motive for Thanatos to train Nico like he is, despite what he's said, so it _will_ be explained further soon, don't worry.**

**I also added in some scenes from Mesperyian's past; don't know if it was helpful or not, but I enjoyed writing them. Mesperyian is fun to write.**

**And Voldemort. Like Thanatos, his description, and personality in the books made his overall character very flexible - yes, there is more seen of him in the books, but only his past and some few primal emotions, like anger or hate, were really revealed. No one really knew what he thought about in his free time. And I don't think anyone's ever tried to figure out either, so I just made some stuff up that was relevant to my story. Simple.**

**The scene at the end... yes, it _might_ be what you think it is, and it _is_ crucial to this story, but the full events of the entire _thing_ will be in another one. That I _may or may not_ write.**

**Kyrie: Honestly, you create an OC, and now you don't even _use_ her?**

**Me: Eh-heh-heh...**

***Regarding my story "Track on Crack" on FictionPress... I'd like it if you'd check that out, too. Utter crack, of course, unlike this one (so be prepared). It's actually collab with many friends (who are too lazy to make their own accounts) on a certain experience we had in track practice one day - but _majorly_ exaggerated. Really funny, too - albeit slightly confusing - and mostly appropriate, so anyone can read.**

**Wow, that was a long author's note. Sorry.**


	18. Discrimination

**Disclaimer: I am so awesome. But not enough to own HP or PJO. Sorry.**

**A/N: HI! (Please don't kill me.) I'm back, after about... what, a month? Don't kill me. Since it's summer... I _am_ hoping to update more often. Hopefully. DON'T KILL ME! Various persons have already tried, and I've got enough mental scarring/trauma already. Jeez.**

**Here, have a chapter.**

**(Are your homicidal urges quelled? No? Eh, it was worth a try.)**

* * *

"... _What_ the actual Hades are you doing, di Angelo?" Kyrie choked as she stumbled into the Room of Requirement.

Nico growled under his breath, attempting to ignore Kyrie, and thrust his dagger forward again, piercing the dummy that had magically appeared before him. He didn't like daggers - too small and not much reach - but Thanatos had insisted (and he'd banned Nico from swords and knives for the week). Still that, of course, wasn't the real problem here.

The _real_ problem was that Thanatos was making him train… on broken glass.

Nico really, really hated him now.

He was made to dance across the razor-like shards, leaving a glistening trail of dark red in his wake. The pale teen gasped, his breath coming short - but forced himself to persevere, to finish this new torture that his (possess-or? nuisance?) had laid out for him.

"It's not like I _want_ to mutilate my feet," Nico snapped finally deciding to acknowledge the Hunter standing before him, jumping and twisting midair to avoid an attack of mini-arrows from behind. He wasn't quick enough - more than half managed to embed themselves into his shoulder. "Ow - urgh. _He's_ making me do it."

Kyrie snorted. "Oh, yes - _him._ The _voice_ in your head, otherwise known to _you_ as Thanatos. You _sure_ you don't have schizophrenia?"

"Shut up." Nico hissed. "You know I'm telling the truth."

She did, but it was just too hard not to poke fun at such a hilarious situation. And boys were _very_ fun to mess with. Especially gay ones.

"Yeah, yeah - here, I brought your Transfiguration homework. Thalia says you have to do it too, since she has to."

Nico stopped in surprise. "Thalia… doing homework? Since when?"

"Well… since the lady Artemis told us to. We're supposed to blend in, and not attract any more attention than we already have."

"Is it even _possible_ to attract more attention than you already have?"

Kyrie shrugged. "Who knows? Anyway, you have to do your homework. End of story. I recommend going to that bushy-haired one in the same house as Thalia - the house called Griffin-something. She's very helpful."

It had been a week since the Hunters of Artemis had shown up at the Quidditch

game, and quite an eventful one too - complete with more of Umbridge being a (censored), gaining a centaur for a Divinations professor (because Umbridge had finally fired Trelawney) , and two tons of gossip about one amazing Harry Potter. Honestly, Nico almost felt bad for the guy, dealing with all the whispers and rumors following him around behind his back. The son of Hades had had a lot of experience with that.

"I don't think I'll even have the time to even see her - my schedule's too filled with training and detention as it is."

"Sucks for you."

Nico sighed, stepping off of the platform of shining glass, now dyed red. As he walked, the injuries on his legs and feet slowly disappeared, fully healed with Thanatos's help. That was, at least one benefit of having such a (censored) in his mind.

_**Hey. Watch you mouth.** _

_No. Shut up._ Nico stuffed him (yet again) into a mentally formed box.

Meanwhile, Kyrie's eyes had widened in surprise, a childlike expression overtaking her face. "Now that's a handy power. _I_ want a voice in my head too! I want one! I want one!" She began to whine and stomp her feet.

Nico stared at her. "You're two hundred years old, and physically sixteen. Can't you at least _act_ your age? Or, you know, somewhat vaguely normal?"

She merely stuck her tongue out at him, dropping the giant stack of homework she'd been carrying and flouncing out the door in a swirl of Slytherin green robes. "Hmph!"

He rolled his eyes. Thalia had weird friends, and even weirder subordinates. Nico wasn't about to try and understand it.

Looking down at the amount of work the Hunter of Artemis had left him, he groaned.

Screw his life.

* * *

"What the — ?"

Nico blinked at the new Divination classroom on the first floor. The ground was now springily mossy with trees were growing out of it; their leafy branches fanned across the ceiling and windows, so that the room was full of slanting shafts of soft, dappled, green light. The students who had already arrived before him were sitting on the earthy floor with their backs resting against tree trunks or boulders, arms wrapped around their knees or folded tightly across their chests, looking nervous. In the middle of the room, where there were no trees, stood the centaur Nico came to know as Firenze.

It was _so -_

He struggled to find the correct adjective, scrambling through his devastatingly small archive of twenty-first century vocabulary. Finally, Nico just settled on the word _weird,_ though the tiny, stick-like frame of such a combination of letters could never completely fill the clothes of the entire situation at hand -

Wait.

What the Hades was he _thinking?_

Nico slammed a fist against his forehead, earning a few strange looks from the others. He chalked the whole thing up to sleep deprivation - days of endless training into the night (due to one _particular_ _humongous jerk_ located somewhere in his nervous system) could not be healthy.

_**Hey. I heal you and keep your body in perfect condition (besides a few cursed scars, which aren't my fault anyway, that is) every day. Any lunacy on your part is** _ **not** _**due to anything** _ **I've** _**done.** _

Nico was spared from thinking of a suitable comeback as Firenze (thankfully) broke into his thoughts and stole him back into the real world.

"Professor Dumbledore has kindly arranged this classroom for us," said Firenze, seeing everyone had settled down, "in imitation of my natural habitat. I would have preferred to teach you in the Forbidden Forest, which was - until Monday - my home… but this is not possible."

"Please - er - sir -" said Parvati (the Gryffindor girl Nico remembered that Thalia had taken an immediate disliking to) breathlessly, raising her hand, "why not? We've been in there with Hagrid, we're not frightened!"

"It is not a question of your bravery," said Firenze, "but of my position. I can no longer return to the forest. My herd has banished me."

_Yikes._ Nico wondered. _Looks like they're not as lax as the Party Ponies._

"Herd?" said Lavender in a confused voice, and Nico wondered briefly if she was thinking of cows. "What - oh!" Comprehension dawned on her face. "There are more of you?" she said, stunned.

_Duh. Or else he'd be classified as "endangered species"._

_**I do believe Firenze would take offense to that, if you spoke out loud.** _

_Get back into your doghouse -_

_**Oh, you asked for it. Tonight's training…**_ Thanatos trailed off unpleasantly. Nico couldn't help but suppress a shiver at the words.

Again, an outside influence had to give him a welcome jerk out of the dark recesses of his mind. Gods, that was happening a lot lately.

"Did Hagrid breed you, like the thestrals?" asked Dean Thomas (an annoying Gryffindor that _he'd_ taken an immediate disliking to) eagerly.

_Oh, if Chiron could see him now…_

Firenze turned his head very slowly to face Dean, who seemed to realize at once that he had said something very offensive.

Before the very irritated centaur could explode (Chiron would have), Nico spoke him flatly, and out loud. "You're an idiot."

Dean jumped and turned to him.

" _Well -_ wait… Hey, you're a Slytherin! What - what're you doing here?! This isn't your class period!"

Nico shrugged. "No, it isn't. But I'm taking the place of Will today - he's… ah, sick." He smirked. "Besides, I need to ask you a question, centaur. You know, all the way from _Chiron?"_

Firenze stopped, and raised an eyebrow. " _Demigod."_ He muttered in Latin.

"Shhh." Nico glared. "Be a little more obvious, would you?"

The centaur stared at him a while longer, then sighed and hurriedly looked away. "Right. Let us begin," He swished his long palomino tail, raised his hand toward the leafy canopy overhead then lowered it slowly, and as he did so, the light in the room dimmed, so that they now seemed to be sitting in a forest clearing by twilight, and stars emerged upon the ceiling. The students quickly forgot about the prior confrontation and there were oohs and gasps - someone (Nico was guessing Ron) even saying audibly, "Blimey!"

"Lie back upon the floor," said Firenze in his calm voice, "and observe the heavens. Here is written, for those who can see, the fortune of our races."

Nico leaned back, already knowing this lesson would prove fruitless for most in the room.

"I know that you have learned the names of the planets and their moons in Astronomy," said Firenze's calm voice, "and that you have mapped the stars' progress through the heavens. Centaurs have unraveled the mysteries of these movements over centuries. Our findings teach us that the future may be glimpsed in the sky above us…"

"Professor Trelawney did Astrology with us!" said Parvati excitedly, like a pretty, yet persistent mosquito buzzing conspicuously throughout the mysterious space floating between - _nevermind._ (Nico decided he seriously needed a psychologist now.) "Mars causes accidents and burns and things like that, and when it makes an angle to Saturn, like now" - she drew a right angle in the air above her - "that means that people need to be extra careful when handling hot things -"

"That," said Firenze calmly, "is human nonsense."

The mosquito was promptly crushed.

"Trivial hurts, tiny human accidents," said Firenze, as his hooves thudded over the mossy floor. "These are of no more significance than the scurryings of ants to the wide universe, and are unaffected by planetary movements."

"Professor Trelawney -" began Parvati, in a hurt and indignant voice.

"- is a human," said Firenze simply. "And is therefore blinkered and fettered by the limitations of your kind."

Many of the students looked offended, but Nico just snorted. "Yes. _We_ are considered inferior, whereas _your_ herd kicks you out and shuns you just because they have a petty little superiority complex over a race you decided to have relations with. Good social skills, that."

"Oh? Like _you_ would know, _son of Hades."_ Firenze added the last part again in Latin, a sneer curling his lip.

" _Shut up!"_ Nico hissed. " _If anyone understand us, I'm done!"_

" _Hmmm… And_ who _is the one initiating all of our conversations now, may I ask?"_

Searching for a reply and unable to find one, Nico settled for just crossing him arms and grunting. "Whatever."

_**You are as childish as one can get, di Angelo.** _

_Shut it._

Firenze gave him a condescending look, then seamlessly transitioned the class's attention away from them and to the lesson again.

"Sibyll Trelawney may have Seen, I do not know," He continued, and Nico heard the swishing of his tail again as he walked up and down before them, "but she wastes her time, in the main, on the self-flattering nonsense humans call fortune-telling. I, however, am here to explain the wisdom of centaurs, which is impersonal and impartial. We watch the skies for the great tides of evil or change that are sometimes marked there. It may take ten years to be sure of what we are seeing."

"The Oracle is better." Nico said petulantly under his breath.

_**But a lot less specific, no?**_ Thanatos asked infuriatingly.

_Q-quiet! Whose side are you on, anyway?_

Firenze pointed to the red star directly above. "In the past decade, the indications have been that Wizard-kind is living through nothing more than a brief calm between two wars. Mars, bringer of battle, shines brightly above us, suggesting that the fight must break out again soon. How soon, centaurs may attempt to divine by the burning of certain herbs and leaves, by the observation of fume and flame. . . ."

_Che. They're just sacrificing to the gods for answers. That's no_ divination.

_**Perhaps, but he can't tell the wizards that. Then his herd would really kill him.** _

They did indeed burn sage and mallowsweet there on the classroom floor, and Firenze told them to look for certain shapes and symbols in the pungent fumes, but he seemed perfectly unconcerned that not one of them could see any of the signs he described, telling them that humans were hardly ever good at this, that it took centaurs years and years to become competent, and finished by telling them that it was foolish to put too much faith in such things anyway, because even centaurs sometimes read them wrongly. Nico could barely stop himself from cracking up.

_Gods, he was doing that a lot more these days. What was even_ happening _to him?_

The bell rang right outside the classroom door and everyone jumped; Nico sighing in relief at seeing the end of all this pointlessness at last. As the students left, he tentatively approached the peaceful centaur _(peaceful_ compared to the ones he knew back overseas, at least) with no small amount of annoyance. Hey, his fatal flaw was grudges. Firenze made fun of him. Therefore, the whole ordeal equaled: Instant Dislike. So Nico was annoyed.

"Yes, son of Hades?" Said centaur asked. "What is it Chiron wanted to ask of me?"

Nico didn't _really_ have a request from Chiron, the lie was just himself taking advantage of whoever he could, but… _Firenze_ didn't need to know that.

Trying to sound civil, he spoke. "Well, since you've already associated yourself with humans, he wants you to keep me updated on the monster action. You forest-dwellers _have_ developed a sixth sense for this stuff anyway -"

"Must I?" The centaur looked unimpressed. "I've associated myself with humans, perhaps - but you are not quite human, are you? Demigods are always more trouble than they're worth."

"You -" Nico took a deep breath before he said anything regretful, reigning in his gradually fraying temper. "But the deal is beneficial to both of us, isn't it? Somehow, the Hogwarts boundaries don't work on Greek (or Roman, whichever you prefer) monsters anymore, which would endanger you, your precious _humans,_ and even your herd. But if you told me where they were, _I_ could take care of them without anyone knowing a single thing."

Firenze thought it over for a moment.

"Can I really trust your skill? _Son of Hades."_ He muttered, the second time he'd pointed it out. "You underworld spawn are always so deceitful - like that one brother of yours in the second Great War of the muggles…"

_What does Hitler have to do with this?_ Nico wondered in confusion. (After figuring out what "second Great War of the muggles" meant.)

_**I believe,**_ Thanatos interjected, _**that he is merely trying make a point.**_

_Oh, and comparing me to_ Hitler, _of all people, is valid?_

Without waiting for a reply, Nico turned back to his exterior conversation.

"Aren't centaurs supposed to be smart? I'm not the _only_ demigod here, _if_ you hadn't noticed. Sons of Hades don't have the best reputation, I'll admit, but if you can't trust me, at least trust the others. We're trying to keep everyone _safe_ here." He glared at the fickle half-human in front of him, daring the creature to say anything against Will or the others.

Firenze frowned. "I don't remember your original mission to be such. Were you not hunting Tom Riddle before? Why have you stopped?"

"I haven't." Nico huffed. "It's just on hold for the moment, what with that Mesperyian running around loose at his side. I've already been tortured, and have had multiple attempts on my life and my… friends."

(He spoke the word tentatively, not unpleased with the strange taste it left in his mouth. Even now he wasn't used to acknowledging those he cared for as "friends". Weird, how much one word could change everything.)

"Friends, eh?" Firenze looked amused. "Interesting for a son of -"

"My name is Nico." Nico snapped. "And don't change the subject. Will you, or won't you help m - _us?"_ He amended. After all, he wasn't solo on his quest any longer.

The centaur grimaced. "Well, I sense no lies on your part, so I aquiesce. However, if I find your intentions are anything other than pure…"

He let the threat hang.

"Yes, _sir."_ Nico mocked. "Wouldn't want _detention_ now, would I?"

* * *

"So, brat - did it work? Are you back to hunting Riddle now?" Hades scowled, face even crueler and paler than usual from the lighting of the Iris Message.

Nico sighed. His father was back to his old self, it seemed. Joy.

He stiffened and bowed before the shimmering image in the bathroom, face impassive as he delivered the weekly report Hades now required of him. "Yes, my lord. As monster attacks can now be handled regularly by Hunters and Firenze, I am free to continue the task you have set for me. However, about Mes -" The thunderous look on his father's face silenced him.

"Your target is Riddle, no?" Hades glared. "I know Mesperyian is an ally of his, but that doesn't matter. You are not part of the wizarding world. You need not take part in their war." He looked down at his son, trying not to let his angry mask crack as he said the next words: "Tom Marvolo Riddle cheated death. So you will kill him. That is all."

"But - !" Nico's voice lost the formality, annoyance tinting his words. "Mesperyian is part of _our_ world, too. She's a goddess! Your daughter!" His tirade took a darker turn. "And this isn't even the _first_ time some evil deity has been plotting something in middle of a brewing war. The last two…"

"Enough." Hades's tone became vaguely threatening. (Which, for him, was only slightly above I-am-the-almighty-lord-of-darkness-so-shut-up-now-or-I-shall-smite- you-mortal.) "She is none of your concern. Do as you're told, _Nico."_

Said demigod ground his teeth, biting back impolite replies. His father may have condoned his rudeness before due to certain… circumstances, but now, he was back to normal. (Normal for him, at least.) In fact, Hades seemed even more angry and ruthless than he used to.

"I apologize, sir. But _please._ I need help here." Nico nearly choked on his words. To have to _beg_ to earn assistance, what was he even coming to? "If Mesperyian does anything else, it could _kill_ me. I've already been melded with Thanatos, and -"

"And that has been an advantage to you, no?" The lord of the underworld said. "Besides, you have the Hunters and Will on your side. Use them." He slashed his hand across the fog, ending Nico's call.

_Use them._ The words echoed in the demigod's head.

_Use them._

Well. Didn't he always?

* * *

Neville squeaked as he ran from his eavesdropping position outside the Gryffindor prefect's bathroom.

There was no doubt about it now. Nico di Angelo was a Death Eater.

He needed to save this "Riddle", whoever he was, from the wrath of Voldemort, and fast.

* * *

**A/N: I hope the irony of the last sentence was not lost on any of you.**

**Next chapter: Nico gets a psycho psychiatrist. (See? The half-soul of Tom Riddle _is_ included!)**

***By the way, I don't know if this bothers any of you, but I _do_ know the time periods of HP and PJO don't match. But I'm putting it all in PJO time anyway, just because. Why? Do I need a reason? Time travel always comes out too fake and forced.**

****Also, I recently read Trials of Apollo - just know, that this is _completely_ AU to that. Don't worry though, I'll make it work. Somehow.**


	19. Psycho Psychiatrist

**Disclaimer: This belongs to the god-like Rick Riordan and J.K. Rowling. Not me.**

**A/N: Yo. Sorry my update took longer than I thought - I had to go to orchestra camp and also wrote another story on FictionPress _(not_ crack this time), which I will be continuing. Due to this, my updates will probably be bi-weekly now.**

* * *

**And I encourage you again to read my story on FictionPress, called "Division" and under the same username, since it is SO FRICKING HARD to get recognized in that place. Seriously. FictionPress is HUGE.**

**But yeah, I'd like you to read it.**

**Here is the summary:**

Eion Hui had never asked to be stalked by flabby old serial killers. Nor had he ever wanted to be kidnapped by a popsicle-eating weirdo. And, of course, he'd NEVER, not once in his entire life, wished to be a Divide. Life... just wasn't fair.

**Shameless self-promotion here... but I _really_ want more reviews for that story. I have one, so far. Just one.**

* * *

**Right, here's your fanfiction.**

* * *

"Whoa, Neville, calm down." Harry jumped in surprise at seeing the flustered Gryffindor before him. "What's wrong?"

Said Gryffindor was bright red, panting and nearly choking on his own tongue as he tried to catch his escaping breath. "Har-ry… I - heh - need - kuh -" He huffed and tried again. "D-di Angelo, he -" He was cut off by another fit of coughing.

"Er…" Harry stepped forward, a little cautiously. "Do you need to visit Madame Pomfrey?"

"No, no. Eh..." Neville raised a hand, taking a deep breath and finally calming down. "I just need to talk to you. It - it's about that di Angelo kid - you know, the exchange student. He… well -" He gave a furtive glance around the crowded hallway, as if the Slytherin in question were stalking them from the shadows. (Which, he very well could be.) "Erm, can we go somewhere more private? You'll _need_ to hear this, believe me."

Raising an eyebrow at him, Harry nodded, quite interested in what had gotten the smaller boy so excited. After all, with so many of the crazy things that had happened already, one needed considerable effort to faze any student of Hogwarts. Gesturing towards Ron and Hermione, Harry and the rest of the Golden Trio quickly followed Neville into an empty classroom.

"Well…? What is it?" Though he tried not to let it, a nervous anticipation seeped into Harry's voice when he spoke. If Umbridge was screwing with him again… "What's happened?"

Neville looked at him ominously. The room temperature dropped several degrees.

"Nico di Angelo," he said, "has been sent here to kill someone."

* * *

There was one thing Harry knew for sure when Neville finished his explanation: he was _screwed._

The other boy had forgotten the name of _who_ exactly di Angelo had been sent to kill, but that didn't really matter. (Well, actually, it did - but _Harry_ didn't know that.) What _did_ matter to him, was that Harry was now _sure_ his creepy classmate was a Death Eater. Ron and Hermione both agreed, too - there could be no mistake. Nico was a servant of Voldemort, young age be damned. And they _had_ to do something about it. But how to stop him? How to freeze Voldemort's plans without that evil snake noticing?

Harry had no idea.

Therefore, he was completely and utterly…

Screwed.

* * *

_Stupid Hades, stupid quest, dammitdammitdammit -_

Nico slammed his fist into the wall, glaring angrily at the cracks it made. He had to kill Voldemort, but how? The guy had seven horcruxes! _Seven._ How in Olympus would he destroy all of them, while _still_ trying to track the impossible to find Dark Lord himself? It was just impossible.

Especially with that tiny matter of…

_Mesperyian._

Even Thanatos was afraid of her - part of the reason why he was pushing Nico so hard. The more power he had, the better to protect both himself (and the hitchhiking god) after all. But there was no way he could get to Voldemort without confronting _her,_ and suffice it to say, Nico was _not_ looking forward to it.

What in Olympus could he _do?_

_Dammit, dammit, dammit…_

More cracks appeared in the wall.

_DAMMIT!_

"You know," said a cold voice behind him, "you _could_ just ask for help, instead of damaging school property."

Nico jolted and whirled around, unbalanced.

_Who - ?_

He stopped, and stared at the ghost before him.

No.

Way.

His mind froze, unable to process -

_**Oh,**_ **there** _ **you are, you stupid weasel - finding a way out of my grasp…**_ Thanatos began to mumble. Nico ignored him, the only thoughts penetrating him quickly turning to gibberish.

_! #$%^*?!_

There, pale and see-though, yet still looking healthier than ever, was the half-soul of Tom Riddle.

The one that, presumably, had finally escaped from the core of his wand.

"Hello, Nico," the spectre continued, amusement tinting his voice from the other boy's shock. "Didn't know _you_ were still alive."

"You… shouldn't be either." Nico whispered. How in the world had this happened? That enchanted box was supposed to foolproof! When had Riddle figured out how to escape? And why hadn't he noticed?! Nico groaned. This situation was just getting better and better.

"I'm not alive," Riddle rolled his eyes. "But a goddess let me out of the stick as a corporeal ghost, in exchange for a promise." He suddenly looked sullen. "I didn't know what it was until I came out, though. Curse that Aphrodite - and I swore on the River Styx, too!"

Nico blinked at him. "How do you even know what any of those are? The _current_ Voldemort doesn't even know that much - besides just the fact that gods exist."

" _I_ know, because of my promise. And don't ask me what it is, you'll figure out soon enough, anyway." He fingered a wand in his hands - Nico's wand - looking as if he wanted to break it in half. "All my dreams of purifying the world… ruined. Because of _you._ Still, I can't say I really hate it, as it _is_ you, of course…"

Immediately, as he said this, Riddle paled even more and clammed up, eyes widening at the uncharacteristic slip of the tongue. _No._ His thoughts ran wild inside his blackened mind, burning it through with more hatred than one could imagine possible. _Was this part of the promise too? How dare she?!_ Tom Marvolo Riddle had a healthy respect for deities and all those who could not die, but this was stretching it too far. _This_ was simply inhumane.

Forget about not hating it. He wanted to murder something, and badly. Perhaps he deserved this treatment, Riddle didn't know, but that didn't mean he had to enjoy it as well. _Someone_ was going to pay for this, one day.

Unaware of the mental turmoil his childhood friend was experiencing, Nico only raised an eyebrow. "Me? What do you mean by that?"

Almost as if some other force was pushing the words out of his mouth, Tom spat. "Because I like you. Romantically. I always have." He choked then, pure rage flashing across his face. "No. No no no no no. How _dare_ she?! How could she make _this_ part of the promise too?" He reiterated his thoughts from the second before. "Why - why am I still speaking? I -"

A wave of darkness rolled off of him - and unlike the unfeeling kind from Nico, it was not just simple shadow, but an ocean of corruption and hate. Riddle laughed, a bitter sound that gave a copper taste to the son of Hades's mouth. He spoke then, abruptly (and quite randomly). "You - you really _don't_ know how lucky you are, don't you? You have so many people on your side, yet you feel always alone, always isolated. Why is that? You are nothing like me, and _still_ are lonely! How utterly idiotic!" He laughed harder, insanity tinting his tone and face; it looked quite disconcerting, especially in the dim lighting of the Slytherin dorms.

Nico gaped at him, wide-eyed. "Look, uh, I know I might've wished for a psychiatrist at some point. But isn't this taking it a little too far, O Almighty Fates?"

Said "Almighty Fates" did not deign to respond.

"Fine, then." He muttered. "I'll fix it myself. Hey, er - Tom? Can you calm down? I don't want any of the wizards hearing…"

Immediately, at his words, the anger and bitterness (and random pulses of angst) disappeared from the dark ghost. Riddle took on a more composed expression - calm as Nico said, but looking no less satisfied than he was before. "So even requests cannot be disobeyed." He muttered in disgust as he watched in surprise at his own reaction. "And to think not having my _thoughts_ private was bad enough…"

Confusion swam through Nico's head before being replaced with a startling clarity. _Oh…_ He realized. Riddle's promise - whatever the exact wording and boundaries were - had made him into the thing he most abhorred: an obedient, helpless slave. And to Nico, no less.

Did Aphrodite even _have_ that kind of power?

She probably did, he decided, when it came to matters of love. And it seemed _love_ was a huge factor in this equation, judging from Riddle's forced confession. Nico was more than a little surprised, and shocked from knowing the other's true feelings, but he'd quickly pushed it away for more important matters at the moment.

What was Aphrodite playing at?

* * *

Eros stared at his supposed mother in disbelief.

"What in the world are you _doing?!_ I thought you were shipping him with Solace!"

Aphrodite frowned at him boredly. "Of _course_ I am. That doesn't mean I'll make their path easy, though." She grinned then, almost lustily, as strange thoughts overtook her mind - thoughts that Eros _really_ didn't want to know. "Besides, a woman can always have her fantasies."

Oh, eck. He may have been the god of love and sexual intercouse, but Aphrodite and so many others - what were they called again? Yow… ee fangirls, or something? - took both a little _too_ far. Eros shuddered. Damn it, when did the mortals get so _creative?_ It was almost mentally scarring - even for someone like him.

"So you did this to Riddle simply on a whim? Don't you _know_ how hard that'll impact Nico's life and relationship with Will?" The love god flopped onto one of the huge couches that adorned his mother's bedroom and glared at Aphrodite balefully. "Hades, and it took me _so long_ to find the right angle to shoot those two at! On _your_ orders, too."

He muttered a few more curses under his breath.

"Hmph! And that is why _you_ are only my underling. You're _much_ too drab to be _the_ love goddess." Aphrodite sniffed.

"Whatever." Eros sighed.

* * *

Nico rubbed his temples, trying to ward off the oncoming headache.

"So really, because you were only the first horcrux, you don't have _any_ idea of where the other horcruxes are, after all?"

"Nope." Tom sighed, looking morose. "None."

_He's no help at all, Aphrodite…_

"Are you lying?"

The ghost froze.

"N-n -" He choked. "Yes."

Nico slammed his head against a conveniently placed nearby wall at the answer. "Dammit, Riddle, _why_ do you have to be so annoying?"

Tom gave him a withering glare. " _Oh?_ Did you forget, that we're talking about _killing_ me right now, of all things? Of _course_ I may be a _little_ reluctant."

"It's not actually killing you, just releasing your soul."

"It's killing me." He said flatly. "And so are you, right now."

Nico scowled at him, the shallow waters of his fraying patience visibly draining at the other's snark.

"Neither of us have a choice in this matter, so shut up. Now, tell me, what were you lying about, and what is the truth?"

The half-ghost looked at him as if he were stupid. _Hello?_ His eyes seemed to say. _Didn't you just tell me to shut up?_

"You can speak now." Nico grumbled.

"I do not know the exact locations, but I do have some idea of what and where the other six horcruxes might be."

"Spit it out."

Riddle sighed, and did so.

As he listened, Nico's mood worsened to a dull black. _Symbolic items of the four founders?_ He had no idea what any of them were. And asking a wizard about them… Nico shuddered at the thought. Ugh. Curse his antisocialness. That was the only way out of this, yet he _still_ didn't want to do anything of the sort.

"You _could_ ask one of your little half-breed friends to help you, you know." Tom's cold voice cut in, breaking him out of his thoughts.

Nico looked at him angrily. "I thought I ordered you _not_ to call me that anymore?"

Riddle snorted.

"You did. But you said nothing of your friends, idiot."

Nico resisted the urge to pulverize him.

"By any chance," the un-pulverizable soul piece continued, "I suggest you start with the Room of Requirement. I think I was planning on hiding a horcrux there."

Well, that was easy enough, at least.

"I'll kill it after the DA meeting today." Nico decided.

Yet again, he neglected to check for eavesdroppers.

* * *

" _Kill… after DA..."_

Harry quickly took his ear away from the opening door of the empty classroom Nico had been using. He jumped back into the shadows, eyes wide as he watched the young Death Eater pass by, lost in thought and twirling a midnight black wand in his hands. After DA… so that was when di Angelo planned to strike. He shivered. It had been luck, really, that Harry had happened to pass by just as the Slytherin spoke the most crucial part of his plan. Now, all he had to do was figure out a way to stop him…

Harry thought of the Weasley twins, and smiled.

* * *

Potter knew something.

Nico was certain of this as he watched the "Chosen One" instruct their DA class. Him and his nosy friends kept staring at him throughout it all, apprehensive and hostile even as he himself kept up a perfect mask of blank ignorance. Inside however, they causing Nico's guts to go crawling with panic. What had they discovered? What terrible fact about him had they weaseled out from the cracks in his flawless cover? What were they going to do?

And how would he pay for his own carelessness?

A terrifying thought struck Nico then - perhaps… perhaps the Golden Trio had discovered Will's _real_ reason for being missing? He quickly shook his head, banishing the thought as soon as it came. No. No no no no no no no. There was _no way_ they could know about that. _No one,_ and absolutely no one knew. Nico had made sure of that. Or else, his father might possibly destroy him for good.

"Alright, we're done for the day." Harry called out into the crowd, stirring Nico from his near panic as the son of Hades shook off such worrying thoughts. "Everyone dismissed."

Nico took a deep breath.

It was time.

A familiar concentration settled over him, a kind of blank coolness completely different from his normal battle frenzy. He mentally grinned, knowing what came next. His identity and personality as the troubled and dark Nico di Angelo faded. His emotions vaporized, giving him a drop of blessed peace, for once. This was the only time for him when feelings didn't matter, when the colors of the world faded and everything was just black and white and beautiful. When he could truly just be, and exist as the son of Hades.

The hunt for escaped souls had begun.

Harry seemed to notice Nico's change right away, eyes narrowing in disgust and suspicion at whatever depraved plan he thought the son of Hades would carry out next. He had good reason to, after all. Though they had the same enemy, Nico was most definitely not on the same side.

The assassins from a third party never were.

Because, fifteen years ago, Harry had escaped death once too, hadn't he?

Hades may have looked that over now, but he wouldn't always.

_**/Alright, Nico./**_ Said Tom (who was in wand form) inside Nico's head as the teen prepared himself to kill. Or exorcise, or something - the soul piece was already dead anyway. _**/When everybody leaves, just imagine that you need a place to hide something. I think that's how I would go about it./**_

_Okay… But won't staying behind be suspicious?_

_**Are you the son of Hades or not?! Make it so no one**_ **sees** _ **you stay behind.**_ Thanatos growled.

_Oh, right._ Nico nearly facepalmed. (But he didn't, since that would look weird to the others.) All the voices in his head were truly making him go insane.

Or was he, already?

Did it even matter?

Nico decided he didn't know, and didn't care, and should stop thinking like Leo. Blurring his figure into a darker shade outside of the visible spectrum - as Thanatos has taught him, the near invisible teen slunk into a corner, silently waiting for the crowd to disperse. He was so close - close -

But _near_ invisible was not _invisible_ by any means.

"Got you."

Was all he heard before the world went dark.

No, he wasn't knocked out. The room had _literally_ turned dark - not from shadow, but of a substance Nico couldn't pinpoint. Magical dust, maybe? The important thing was, he couldn't see through it and that was bad.

He knew what was coming next, after all.

Gryffindors were quite predictable.

" _Stupefy!"_

" _Expelliarmus!"_

" _Incarcerous!"_

Three spells shot towards him, accuracy not perfect, but dangerously close enough. Before Nico could react, he was tied up and fighting to keep his consciousness. He struggled, watching helplessly as his wand flew out of his hand, tumbling into the darkness. Oh, crap. That wasn't going to end well.

Since he knew that last one… _wasn't_ because of a spell.

"HA!" Insane laughter broke into the air, Tom Riddle freeing himself from his poplar stick cage yet again. "Long time no see, HARRY POTTER!"

His ghostly form leaped up, with Nico's wand glowing (despite the lack of a Riddle-soul core) and shooting out a dangerously _green_ spell. Nico tried to speak up, to stop the maddened spectre, but his bonds were too tight and he was too tired. Riddle had escaped from his control - and this was the consequence. Could anything possibly be worse?

_Whatev'r…_ Nico sighed. _M' sleepy…_

_**DON'T. YOU. DARE.**_ Thanatos resounded in his head like a clanging bell, clearing the condemning cobwebs. _**Get up, and get out of these ropes. Fly. Do anything. But do**_ **not** _ **let me - er, us - die.**_

At once, Nico felt something close to the sensation of being injected with five thousand gallons of coffee.

Ow.

Still - though his head ached - he was fully awake now and complied to Thanatos's command, using most of his strength to shadow travel out of the magical ropes holding him captive. The morally right thing to do then would have be to use the very last of his ability to stop Riddle, but… Nico really, _really,_ needed to kill that soul piece as soon as possible. The Golden Trio wouldn't give him another two days to try again.

_Especially_ not now that they'd seen his little rabid pet ghost.

_**Do it.**_ Thanatos urged. _**Find the soul. When have such insignificant mortals ever bothered you?**_

His ethical side disagreed. ' _ **We're all human to some extent. Letting them die would turn you into a murderer. Wouldn't that be nice knowledge to the kids back at camp?'**_

Yet, logic held another answer. _**~If Harry Potter died, the Voldemort soul piece inside of him would too, wouldn't it? Then you can kill two birds with one stone. Literally.~**_

And then, another voice spoke.

' _Don't kill anything, Nico. You can capture the soul piece in this room and ignore the mortals - take both, if you would like - but do not kill either. You'll need all seven of the horcruxes later.'_

Nico froze. Wait a minute. He hadn't heard from _her_ (besides receiving minor help, from time to time) since the beginning of the school year. What was the meaning of this?

Why, in the world, was _Hecate_ here?

* * *

Firenze stared up at the starry ceiling of his classroom.

He could sense a large influx of monsters nearing, and the whisper of a tragedy - _something_ was coming.

Something big - and utterly terrible.

_Inform the son of Hades?_

He shook his head. Too late now.

The boy, locked in his own battle, was already dead.

And so, if his prediction were correct, were the rest of them.

He wondered…

Tomorrow, would Hogwarts still stand?

**A/N: Hello again. I have another cliffhanger.**

**Uh... please put away that knife.**

**Thank you.**

**\- Will's doing something. Yes,I _know._ I'm not going to tell you, though, so don't ask. And do _not_ take that knife back out!**

**\- Riddle has entered the story. I haven't read Chamber of Secrets in a while, so he might be OOC...**

**\- Hecate is here. Why not?**

**\- The soul pieces are important, and I shall not tell you why.**

**\- Firenze has noticed something. Again, don't ask. I won't say.**

**The extent of my cruelty is great indeed...**

* * *

**WAIT! I nearly forgot - I must answer all my guest reviewers (who are awesome, by the way).**

**Cookie Guest:**

No, the irony was not lost in us (;  
This is a great story and I love your take on  
The characters, and I have no problem with  
What your putting Nico through, it will  
Make him better prepared for what you plan  
For him(Nico,I don't mean that, I'll smash the fourth wall and you make a run for it). He is my third fav character (behind  
Percy and Leo) so I think he deserves just a  
Bit more Solangelo relief from the challenges  
You put him through to kind of counter balance  
Things. Keep up the the great work, love Thantos banter, more Solangelo, and DON'T  
ABANDON THIS STORY! It's amazing and deserves a cookie *hands over cookie through  
Screen*

(P.S:I think you should have him play the piano for Will while Will sings, don't know when or how this will happen but I REALY want it to, if it does, more cookies! (::) (::) (::) (::)

P.P.S: I didn't login so you don't have to respond, but if you want to acknowledge me, just make cookie reference in chapter 19 and I'll be happy.

**Nico is only your third favorite... *dies* No, I'm going to hold anything against you - but COME ON! How is he _not_ better than Percy and Leo?! (Don't answer that, actually. I'll start shooting flames.)**

**And I won't abandon this story. Why would I ever do that?**

**As for your P.S., I... don't know. Wasn't Will supposed to be a bad singer?**

**Thank you for the cookies.**

**Meow (a.k.a. Cookie Guest No. 2):**

You know what? I fell bad for spamming everything, but di imortales, I love this story. You deserve a cookie; here have some: (::)(::)(::)(::)(::)(::) and a plain one just in case:( )! Keep up the good work! Also, questions!

1.) What is your opinion on Thalico? I personally can't stand iit, and I would like to know what you think.

2.) Do you plan on doing a sequel? If I remember correctly, then this was 5th year. How would you feel doing it through to 7th year?

3.) Do you have an approximation of how long this is going to be? I would really like it to be kinda long. Keep me on my seat, you know?

And finally:

4.) Do you know how well you write? Despite being a 13 year-old girl, I really love writing and I write rather well, too. So I constantly find myself critiquing others works, and finding the bad. But yours is truly good and I wish my PJO/HP crossover would turn out like yours.

Keep up the great work!  
YOU ROCK!

**Thalico sucks. End of story.**

**Maybe a sequel? But not as a crossover with Harry Potter. It'll either be about the aftermath of this story, or another crossover (continuing from this one) where Nico enters different series entirely.**

**Don't know how long this will be. I just go where the writing takes me.**

**Yo, I'm thirteen too!**

**And... thanks for the cookies.**

* * *

**There! Done!**


	20. Ticking Backward

**Disclaimer: Only plot be mine. Everything else owned by Riordan and Rowling. Quite sad, I know.**

**A/N: Hello. It's... been a while.**

**Nico: A _while?_**

**Me: Shut up and read.**

* * *

_12:00 AM_

"Um, Mes - I mean, mi'lady… shouldn't we wait for a better moment? Because he -" An attempt to stall.

"No. We're taking him today. There might not be another chance." A dangerous smile. "Why? Getting cold feet?"

He shuddered, backing up. "No no. I'm good. Totally on your side."

Mesperyian's smile widened.

"You'd better be, _Solace."_

* * *

_11:30 PM_

Nico was floating.

Perhaps that was a bad word for it. What he really felt like was mixture of sensations ripping at his body his body, of which included, but were not limited to:

1\. The occurrence of a Leo Valdez-sized "mistake".

2\. The inside of Khione's refrigerator.

3\. And a jackhammer pounding on his head.

All inside a large block of jello, where he seemed to be suspended.

Nico had absolutely no idea how any of it'd happened.

* * *

_11:00 PM_

Voldemort grinned a bloodthirsty smile, blood red eyes glinting. He was glad he'd kept those eyes. Sure, having his old face back was nice, but the red eyes were a pleasant addition.

 _All the better to petrify you with, my little mudblood prey._ He chuckled. There was a demigod - a healer, no less - on his side now. A _demigod._ A child with a god's power, yet still human and manipulable. (Unlike _someone else,_ who was only working for him due to a… a _crush._ ) His smile took on a smug twist. There was no way Voldemort could lose now.

Right?

_But traitors - double crossers - exist too._

Right?

_We have his father. There's no way he could betray us._

Right?

(Wrong. The son of Hades would see to that.)

But Voldemort didn't even know he was alive.

* * *

_10:30 PM_

Firenze escaped.

* * *

_10:00 PM_

Riddle gritted his teeth. Harry Potter had gotten away, as Nico and Thanatos dragged him back into his wand; binding him back into his place. So terrible were his sins, it seemed, that he couldn't even be happy with the death of even _one_ defenseless child. In the end, there really had been no way for him to rise up from defeat; he was now just another expendable servant, tangled like a helpless fly in the giant spider web of Fate.

But then again, he _was_ Tom Marvolo Riddle. He'd expected this.

So now, despite all the odds, he still fought back with all his might, even as his actions dragged him further into the darkness.

_I hope the other me is doing better._

Then again, Nico didn't even consider _Voldemort himself_ to be the real enemy.

What chance did Tom have?

* * *

_9:30 PM_

The child smiled, casting her spell. Two hours time. Two hours, and her Mistress's enemy would die.

_Sayonara, son of Hades. No one can survive my power._

* * *

_9:00 PM_

The first wave of monsters had already crested the horizon.

The wizards of Hogwarts continued on, oblivious.

* * *

_Now._

Hell on Earth had broken.

* * *

**A/N: Yes, it's short and I ended on a cliffhanger. But I had to post _something_ after all this time, right?**

**Next update won't take me as long. (I hope so, anyway.) I won't abandon this, not with all the support you have given me.**


	21. Hi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A farewell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is mostly for my following on FanFiction.net, so people here don't have to take it too seriously. But I feel like I still owe you all the same explanation, so here goes:

**PLEASE READ AUTHOR'S NOTE.**

**Or not. I won't force you to do anything, but you might be less confused if you pay attention to my weird, obnoxious bold text just this once.**

**Hey. When was the last time I posted, again? Haha. Ha.**

**I have a confession to make.**

**In middle school, I wanted more than anything to be a writer. A professional one, just like Rick Riordan, or J.K. Rowling. And back then, though I pretended to act all jaded and whatnot, the true, and extremely naive, part of me fully believed I'd somehow be able to do it. Writing this fanfiction, of course, was my thirteen-year-old self's first step towards achieving that popularity I so desperately craved.**

**Guess what?**

**I was a fucking idiot.** **_Yes,_ ** **I just swore. I'm almost sixteen, fuck the (censored) shit. I'm entirely over with playing the "nice, online" Zhaoq. (Actually, it's been qZhao for two years now, just never changed it on FanFiction because this was the one site I completely forgot about.)**

**...As you can see from my unnecessary attitude, I'm still an idiot. But I'm a more realistic idiot now. Exactly what I've realized? There's no point writing a story or continuing a dream that you're not interested in and can't achieve. The past few chapters I've been so horribly dishonest with all of you and myself. I've acted pathetic, promising that "Oh, of** **_course,_ ** **I won't quit this story (that I'm so damn sick of) because of all the support you've given me!" To the people who actually supported me? You didn't deserve that. You didn't deserve me lying straight through the screen so that I could keep all your attention on me for just a little longer.**

**I'm sorry.**

**I won't become a writer. I can't, I won't. Same difference. The chances of actually making it are astronomically low and it's time I accepted that and moved on from this story that I wrote for the** **_sole reason_ ** **of getting people to praise me. I'll keep writing, of course, I do enjoy it, but this time I'll write for myself and not for the people online undeserving of my dishonesty and unreliability. Will I ever post anything online again? Maybe, if I find what I write is worth sharing.**

**This story is up for adoption. Just give me the word and I'll share all the docs with you. Copy and paste, don't even need to give me credit. Just tell me when you've posted so I can delete this shit. It's not fair to you guys for me to write about something I don't care about anymore. If no one wants this story, which, I guess is reasonable, I** **_can_ ** **write one or two more chapters just to finish it up quickly. But I promise you it won't be good, and I promise you that you won't like it.**

**Besides, my favorite character is Apollo now.**

_(Here, so you don't leave with just some moody rant from an arrogant, mentally disturbed teenager. This is what I tried to write before I realized I was a fucking idiot.)_

* * *

_A few days ago._

"Sure, I'll help you."

"What?! Really? Just like that?" Will's face dropped into a mask of shock.

"Why not?" Nico shrugged. "I mean, Thalia and the Hunters have already agreed to do it, right? That plan of yours must be pretty well thought out. I don't have much to lose by trying it if that's the case."

Will blinked. He'd expected the convincing to be a lot harder than this. Guilt racked him immediately as he made his next reply. "B-but - your father. Won't Hades -"

"He'll kill me if he finds out, sure." Nico bit the air with a cold smirk. "But this isn't the first time I've done things behind his back, against his orders. My father never found out before, so why would he now?"

"You're hopeless." Will sighed. "Don't you have any concern for your own safety?"

"Not particularly, no." Nico said, completely innocent in his honesty. "So, tell me. How is it you're going to help Voldemort, again?"

* * *

The god smiled bitterly. Well, he hardly counted as a god now. Not after that cursed family dinner, when, instead of escorting him back to his cell, Zeus had - Zeus had -

 _What are you crying about?_ His own thoughts were mocking him in his head.  _He's done this to you before, hasn't he?_

And now I have to rely on my human son to save me. How pathetic.

Being mortal was fine with Apollo. There was always a way, no matter how difficult, to get back. But being captured by Hecate's pet psychos? That was a little more than humiliating. And to think of Will, risking his life and sacrificing his pride just to save such a useless father…

* * *

_Aaaaand that's it. A bit short to soften my rant, I suppose, so here's what I've been writing in the past year or so; though I promise you, you won't find it online anytime soon. Read it if you like._

* * *

**1**

**Mirror, Mirror On the Wall**

"So? Are you going to play or not?"

He couldn't speak. Paralyzing fear clutched at his throat with icy claws.

" _Answer_  me."

It spoke with his own voice. Scowled with his own face.

It was his own reflection… dyed crimson.

"Hey."

Something flew at him suddenly—a whirling blur which shot through the air and buried itself in his arm. He cried out in pain, instinctively yanking it out.

In his hand, covered in sticky blood and made of sharp metal, was a playing card. The… Ace of Spades? Through squinted eyes, he could just barely make out the faint black ink outlining the intricate number and figures.

"Answer me, or next time, I'll aim between the eyebrows." Something wet and sticky probed at his forehead and stuck there, marking the next target. " _You'll play… right?"_

He flinched. Please… this couldn't be happening. Please—

_You'll play… right?_

No.

_Play… right?_

No, no.

_Right? Right?_

"Agh—! No—please—! Stop! I beg of you!"

The words continued to reverberate inside his mind, ringing uncontrollably, becoming unbearable, growing louder and louder and  _louder_ —

The school bell rang.

Drenched in cold sweat, Eion Hui woke up.

**2**

**Who's the Fairest of Them All?**

"Hello, there."

The class, including the newly roused Eion, stared.

"So, yeah, erm… as you may have heard, Mme. Creamer has gotten into an unfortunate accident, a  _very_  unfortunate accident indeed, and she will need a considerable amount of time to recover." Said the stranger standing at the front of the classroom. "So, for the rest of this month, I will be your substitute."

On the whiteboard, written in barely legible cursive, was the name "Mr. Allan Sterling."

In front of students, stood the strangest person any of them had ever seen.

It wasn't  _just_  that he was ridiculously handsome and spoke with a British accent. That alone would have been perfectly fine—more than fine, really, for a good deal of the high school class were teenage girls.

No, this man was a bit  _harder_  to explain.

Firstly, his clothes. They were  _quite_ something else—"something else" meaning they didn't even belong in this  _century_. At the St. Claire Preparatory High School, it was common to see a teacher in formal clothing or even a suit, but one dressed  _to the nines_ in  _Victorian era-style clothing?_  Unheard of. And the colors, too. His overcoat and top hat were bright  _purple,_ of all things, a garish shade that no actual Victorian-era man would have ever worn. Underneath, cream-colored ruffles accompanied a light blue vest, which was patterned with—wait, was that  _paisley?_  Shocking. Then there was his hair, which he'd twisted into a thick, blonde braid that swung almost down to his waist; it was longer than that of most  _girls,_  for Heaven's sake. Finally, to complete the ridiculous look, a gaudy satin ribbon tied it off at the end in a huge, obnoxious bow.

As ridiculous as this ensemble may seem, his appearance was yet stranger made by the two short sticks—or at least, that's what they looked like—nestled in specialized sheaths of some sort, hanging on either side of his hips. Well— _strange,_ yes, but for some reason, they also seemed kind of…  _ominous._  The slight fear of them that the class felt was mostly unexplainable, and yet, from the way the substitute held himself, like that of an armed police officer, it would not have been out of place to suggest that it was almost like—

Almost like they were weapons.

"This is a  _French_  class, correct?" Mr. Allan Sterling ignored the stares and strode to the back of the class, settling down on the comfortable computer chair behind Mme. Creamer's desk. Without waiting for an answer, he spoke again. "Sadly, out of the languages I am willing to speak,  _French_  is not one of them. So, until Mme. Creamer's recovery, you will be doing the various worksheets that she has assigned."

Mr. Sterling reached across the desk and picked up a stack of paper. "These are due tomorrow," he said as he passed them out. "You have the entire class period to get them done. I suggest you start now."

A loud groan emanated from the entire class. Despite Sterling's exciting looks, it seemed the man's arrival had heralded anything but. Eion was almost ready to go back to sleep upon hearing this—and he would've, if not for the nightmare he'd had earlier. But now, even the thought of sleeping… he shuddered. He couldn't remember exactly what he'd dreamed, but Eion was sure he never wanted to dream it again. So, he pulled out a pencil instead, resigning himself to an hour of mind-numbing boredom.

"While you work, I'll call attendance." Mr. Sterling took out a few sheets of paper and began to read from them. "Excuse me if I mispronounce your name."

"Angelica Adams."

"Here!"

"Jeremiah Brady."

"Here."

"Isabelle Beckett."

"..."

"Isabelle Beckett?"

"...I'm here."

Eion glanced over at the slightly-lagging student whose name had just been called.  _Beckett._  He mused.  _Isabelle Beckett._  What a normal name for the ever unfathomable  _Isabelle Beckett,_  who, within twenty minutes of her arrival at the school, had been instantly pegged by her label-obsessed teenage classmates as the resident "real-life 'mysterious new girl' stereotype." The girl in question was currently staring absentmindedly out of one of the large windows in the classroom from her seat at the front, a wistful expression upon her face. To most people, even the mere sight of her was incredible to behold. Her eyes glimmered dark gold, large and expressive, like that of a fairytale character. Her long black hair spilled mesmerizingly down her body, dark, shiny waves curling around an astonishingly beautiful face. Her figure stretched tall and slender, and although she covered it with straightforward clothes—a plain white blouse and black jeans—on her, they still managed to look elegant and stylish. In the classroom, she was like a goddess among wretched mortals. (Eion wondered from time to time if she was even real.)

Isabelle had only just transferred to St. Claire last week, a strange time to be doing so, as it was already May and nearing the end of the school year. And yet, despite countless rumors, no one in the student body could figure out anything about her circumstances: where she'd come from, why she had moved, etc. She'd just  _appeared_  one day, quiet and reserved and  _cold,_  her unapproachable aura repelling about as many boys as her beauty attracted.

Nevertheless, Cori still had a massive crush on her. Eion knew this  _very_ well, not just because the guy himself had told him so in confidence yesterday, but also because, upon revelation, he'd been immediately forced into a deathly serious vow of blood and spit to ensure secrecy… It had been quite  _memorable,_ to say the least. Eion didn't exactly care for Isabelle to the extent that Cori did, but in the interest of keeping Cori as his best (and only) friend, Eion could at least pretend to have the same level of support and adoration. Besides, Isabelle  _was_ pretty interesting… and more than satisfying to observe.

"Ay—eye— _eeeee—_ yon?" Mr. Sterling's stumbling pronunciation jolted Eion out of his female daydreams. No doubt the name being butchered was his.

"Eion." He said. "My name is Eion." It was pronounced 'eon'; he'd been named, as was the tradition in his family, in hopes of long lifespan.

Mr. Sterling raised an eyebrow. "Interesting name, Eion… Hui—correct?"

Eion nodded, though the weird spelling wasn't actually anything special—just a mistake for 'Eon' on his birth certificate. However, his parents, relatively new Chinese immigrants at the time, had ended up liking it, so the following years of mispronunciation continued even to this day.

Eion sighed. He needed to stop thinking about irrelevant things and actually get to work. Fighting off the residual drowsiness, he picked up his pencil and began the menial task of verb conjugation...

Until he fell asleep again.

* * *

The first thing Eion realized, upon regaining consciousness, was (obviously) that no one had bothered to wake him. It was irritating, of course, but he felt no surprise. His desk was, after all, located in a shadowy corner at the back of the room—a position he'd idiotically chosen himself—so the chances of anyone actually noticing him were quite low. Thankfully though, he hadn't dreamed. At this point, it was the least Lady Luck could give him.

The second thing he realized? He wasn't alone.

The classroom was dark—there was no French class second or third period—but not exceptionally so; though blinds had been pulled down over all the windows, a bit of light still shone through the cracks. Eion could make out and identify very clearly the two human shapes at the front of the room—that is, Isabelle and Mr. Sterling.

He blinked. Wait.

Isabelle and Mr. Sterling?

Alone? In a dark room? Together?

_Isabelle?_

And  _Mr. Sterling?_

 _Stop it._ Eion told himself.  _You can't just jump to conclusions like that; you'll make Cori sad._ The situation wasn't all that strange, after all. Perhaps Isabelle only had a question, or…

He checked his watch. It was the middle of second period.  _That doesn't make any sense,_  said the annoying, rebellious side of him.  _Why would she cut class for something like that? Why is the room so dark? And_ why,  _in great holy heavens, are they_ so close together?!

He knew couldn't leave. There was no way to get to the door at the front of the classroom without alerting them to his presence. But it was pure agony, having to sit there and watch them—

Argue?

Eion blinked again, then fought desperately to keep his face from flushing bright red (though no one would have seen him anyway). Now that he was observing the events before him with closer attention, Eion realized he'd completely misconstrued the entire situation. Somehow, in his sleepy daze, he'd ended up believing it to be some sort of affair… He almost laughed at his own ridiculousness.

 _And I'd told myself not to jump to any conclusions…_  He shook his head.

Affair?

It was anything but.

" _Who—are—you?"_ Mr. Sterling growled, his tall figure casting a threatening shadow over the seemingly helpless Isabelle. They  _were_  incredibly close; Eion hadn't been wrong on that. In fact, Mr. Sterling had even grabbed Isabelle by the collar at some point, jerking her close and forcing her face up to meet his. Difficult for Eion as it was to make out Mr. Sterling's exact expression in the dim lighting, there was no doubt in his mind that the man's eyes were icy cold, filled with the unexplainable fury that had sounded in his voice.

Then Isabelle giggled.  _Giggled._

"Oho~? Who do I look like to you?" She laughed again. It was a completely unnatural tinkling sound that—as clichéd as it sounds—sent shivers running down Eion's spine. He stared at her, shocked. Not only had her laugh been so terrifying, but there had been no fear in her voice either. None.  _In a situation like this?_ Here was a man nearly  _half a foot_  taller than her, holding her by the collar, and basically  _threatening_  her, and Isabelle… Isabelle was  _giggling?_

Eion wondered if he was still dreaming.

 _These kinds of things… they only happen in movies, right? What in the world…?_ He struggled to wrap his mind around what he was witnessing.  _This…_

 _ **LOL, just accept it.**_ A drawling voice (sporting a very interesting case of teenage slang addiction) resounded in his mind.

Eion flinched.  _Oh, not_ you.  _I don't need you._

_**Just trying to help, fam. When have I ever been wrong?** _

_Fuck off._

_**You're so mean. You're not crazy, you know.** _

_Haha, that's funny. You're a fucking weird millennial-sounding voice in my head. That's not normal. Get the hell out._

_**You're right. It isn't normal. It means you're** _ **special.**

Eion imagined banging his head on his desk. Unfortunately for him, however, a noise like that could alert Mr. Sterling and Isabelle, and was probably not the best course of action.

Also, it didn't work. The damn headache (no pun intended) took no damage whatsoever.

(Of course, Eion knew this because he'd tried it before.)

Anyway, for the time being, he decided to listen to the voice. He always ended up doing that.

 _Accept the situation._ It wasn't bad advice, honestly. There wasn't much else he could do, and freaking out about it like he just had been was counterproductive. He glanced down at his watch.

Ten minutes to third period.

 _Okay._   _Calm down, calm down, I'll figure something out. What_ can  _I do?_

_**Well, you've got two choices: keep watching, and eventually get caught, or try to leave… and get caught even faster. Pick your poison, man.** _

_Shut up._

_**Just saying.** _

Eion gritted his teeth. He really, really didn't want to get involved in this weirdness. Whatever kind of movie this was, he wanted to stay an extra. No, it didn't matter to him that Isabelle looked like she was being threatened. Selfish self-preservation came first, and some irrational instinct told him that Mr. Sterling was not one to be trifled with, even if Eion were to call the authorities on him. In fact, he wasn't sure who was more terrifying at this point, Mr. Sterling or Isabelle; after all, no ordinary girl could have laughed like that in front of such a terrifying figure. Was there a way he could avoid the situation without being caught? If he could just…

_**Of course not, bruh. I'm** _ **always** _**right. Always.** _

_Ignore it…_ Eion thought to himself.  _(_ _ **Hey! You're so mean!**_ _)_ Suddenly, an idea struck him.

_What if—what if I just went back to sleep?_

_**Whaaaaat? Hiding from reality now? Aren't you cute.** _

_No! Shut up! It's just, if I go back to sleep, even_ if  _Albert or Isabelle discover me, they might just think I'd slept through the whole thing._  In that case, he could wake up, act oblivious, and, well, no one would know any better, would they?

_**What—you—WTF, I didn't give you that choice!** _

Eion froze. Wait a minute. Did the voice did say what he thought it said?

" _I didn't give you that choice!"_

Yes. Yes, it did.  _Haha!_ Eion nearly choked with glee. How magnificent.

The voice… had just been proved  _wrong._

_**Hey! Don't think you're so much better, [insert slew of unintelligible text-speak insults]! They could still try to do something to you for just being there, you know!** _

_Shut up. It's better than what_ you  _thought of._

_**Urk—!** _

Eion was absolutely  _elated._  For once, this horrible…  _thing_ had been wrong.  _Wrong._ How  _miraculously_  beautiful. Perhaps this world was merciful after all.

With this in mind, he closed his eyes, and—ever so casually—defied fate itself.

**3**

**[Insert Evil Witch Chuckling Here]**

Albert Spencer stared at the sleeping student. Had he been here the whole time?

As in… the  _whole_ time?

Oh, lord.

The "substitute teacher" grimaced, dreading the worst. Fucking  _hell._ If the kid had heard anything—

Well. He really, really hoped that wasn't the case. Albert did not want this situation to turn out  _messy._

_Well, best to wake him first._

"Oi," he reached out and shook the boy none too gently, "Wake up,  _you bloody idiot."_  He added last part under his breath, a bit peeved at having to deal with such unlucky circumstances.

"Mngh…" The student slowly opened his eyes, shaking his messy hair out of his face. Albert observed the boy, racking his brains for a name.  _Hmmm,_ he thought,  _how to properly question him?_ It wouldn't do to raise any unnecessary suspicion, after all.

"Eh, Mr. Sterling?" The student muttered, blinking up at him blearily.

"Yes." Albert  _Spencer_  answered automatically, still trying to figure out who exactly this child was. "Were you sleeping here the entire time? What period are you from?"

"Wha—? Sleeping?" The boy blinked a few more times, then yawned, glancing around the room in a daze. A moment passed as he realized his surroundings.

Then, spine snapping ramrod straight, he froze, eyes flicking down to his wrist. The ticking numbers were registered immediately, and a look of sheer horror settled upon the student's face.

"Oh, shi—" Again he froze, realizing Albert was still there, "—ttake mushroom." He cringed in embarrassment, beginning to stutter. "S-sorry."

Only silence answered him. Albert analyzed the teenager carefully, careful scrutiny scanning for any sign that he knew more than he let on.

"Ahahaha. Ha." The student laughed nervously. "I'm sorry about the sleeping and stuff too, Mr. Sterling. Really, I am."

Finally satisfied, Albert reacted, pinning the boy a disapproving glare. Inwardly, however, he sighed in relief. Either the kid was ridiculously good at acting, or he was just another oblivious sleep-deprived highschooler.

Albert was willing to bet on the latter.

He shook his head, acting as if he were disappointed in the student. "I'm not sure if I'm allowed to hand out detentions, so I'll let it go this time." He pointed to the clock, pretending he hadn't noticed the student's watch (and subsequent outburst). "Third period has only just started, so you'd better hurry."

The boy brightened immediately, standing up. "Oh, okay. Wow. Thanks!" He bolted out of the classroom upon these words, no doubt worried about his other, less lenient teachers.

"Do make sure to talk to your second-period teacher after school!" Albert shouted after him. It was better to look at least a little concerned, after all.

* * *

Eion was ridiculously good at acting.

He had to be, in his current state. If he planned on making his way through daily life as a regular highschool student, his mental issues needed to be kept strictly away from the rest of society—in other words, the voice had to be completely hidden. Unfortunately, this was not a simple task. Manifesting in his consciousness at the worst of times, his inhuman tormenter had harassed him relentlessly throughout the years; in fact, it'd been so long that Eion couldn't even remember when it first appeared. It had always been there, as far as he could recall, irritating him with bad slang terms and constantly trying to provoke him into a blithering mess. This misery had only become harder and harder to cover up as time passed; the voice grew older and more intelligent as Eion did. Luckily, however, theatrical skill came naturally to Eion, and over the years, he'd built up an entire arsenal of silver-slicked words and perfectly painted masks; at this point, he believed, it was near impossible for even the most observant of human beings to see through his disguise.

Was this behavior unhealthy? Probably. But Eion had a feeling that a confession of his problems would only make his situation even more bothersome than it already was. Honestly, he didn't think he needed therapists or concerned guidance counselors in his life when it was clear to him he could function just fine on his own.

"Eion," snapped his third period teacher, "you were already late; the very least you could do now is pay attention."

Eion jolted out of his dismal reverie, glad to be distracted from such psychological musings. "Ah! Sorry. I'm just a bit tired today, you see." He smiled sheepishly, hoping the teacher would buy it. Being "tired" was better than being "mentally deficient," after all.

Mrs. Iwan sniffed. "Clearly. But that isn't  _my_  problem, now is it? If you think you can slack off like this in my class, then I expect a perfect score on the next test."

Eion stifled a groan. A perfect score? In  _English?_ Haha… no. Better to pay attention to this self-important old bat.

"Haha… yeah. I'm  _really_  sorry, honest."

"Hmph." The English teacher sniffed again, then, with extreme pretentiousness, swept herself back to the front of the classroom. "After all those  _previous_ incidents, I'm really starting to doubt it."

"Ahahaha…" Eion laughed again, trying to exude sheepishness to his maximum capacity. It was a general rule that most teachers tried not to waste their time on idiots, so Eion always tried to be thick-headed as possible around his least favorite ones.

Fortunately for him, this feeble attempt for leniency worked, and Mrs. Iwan went back to her lecture on the illustrative language of the great Charles Dickens. Eion yawned, the urge to sleep growing ever stronger as he tried to keep listening. Though he did enjoy Dickens's work—the dry humor was immensely satisfying—Mrs. Iwan's lectures had a way of making even the work of even most expressive authors as dull and colorless as possible. In fact, he was pretty sure the drab teacher was already missing about half the sarcasm expressed in Dickens's " _very_ illustrative words!"

Eion sighed. Never mind that. Centuries-old authors and test scores aside, he still had that other little issue nagging at him in the back of his mind.

Isabelle Beckett.

Yes, he'd dodged any trouble so far, but with his luck, there was very little possibility that could last—movies never gave extras like him any plot armor, after all. Even if Mr. Sterling had let him go for now, there was no guarantee that the man would continue to leave him alone. And Isabelle, though presumably unsuspecting, was still a close-by classmate, making any continued interaction very risky.

"Agh, why me?" He muttered miserably, running a hand through already disheveled hair.  _The worst I've done in my life is probably steal candy from the convenience store once or twice. Whatever did I do to deserve such bothersome crap happening to me?_

Eventually, the bell rang, and Eion stumbled out the door in a daze, still fretting over the unnerving events of two hours past.

* * *

**"Art Is Dead"**

Art is dead  
Art is dead  
Art is dead  
Art is dead

Entertainers like to seem complicated  
But we're not complicated  
I can explain it pretty easily

Have you ever been to a birthday  
Party for children?  
And one of the children  
Won't stop screaming  
'Cause he's just a little  
Attention attractor

When he grows up  
To be a comic or actor [or fanfiction writer]  
He'll be rewarded  
For never maturing  
For never under-  
Standing or learning

That every day  
Can't be about him  
There's other people  
You selfish asshole

I must be psychotic  
I must be demented  
To think that I'm worthy  
Of all this attention

...

I am an artist, please God forgive me  
I am an artist, please don't revere me  
I am an artist, please don't respect me  
I am an artist, feel free to correct me

A self-centered artist  
Self-obsessed artist  
I am an artist  
I am an artist

But I'm just a kid  
I'm just a kid  
I'm just a kid  
Kid  
And maybe I'll grow out of it

\- Bo Burnham

* * *

**I'm trying to grow out of it, though I'm not sure anyone really cares about my problems anymore. It's been so long since I've last resurfaced.**

**Goodbye.**

**Thank you.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)


End file.
